every major point. but i like him. i think he's a good man. and i think he's here for the exact same reasons that i'm here, to make this country a better place to live. and i think about that virtually everyone in this body. and speaker o'neill not only represented that. he spoke it loudly all the time. he loved this body, not for all the difficulties that it presents, not for all the messes that we create and then try to fix, but for the fact that we have a lot of people who come here trying to work on the most difficult issues in the world with passion and with commitment and with respect for each other. . with that i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california. >> i wish to yield one minute to the speaker of the house, the honorable, john boehner. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the speaker. the speaker: let me thank my colleague for yielding and i rise in strong support of h.r. 6604 and commend my colleague, the gentlelady from california, ms. pelosi, for sponsoring this

resolution. tip o'neill needs no introduction to this body. those respect and admire tip's record, and his long shadow he cast over the people's house. we all know his best known fame, all politics is local. it's certainly true today as we propose to name a building right here at the foot of capitol hill, a stone's throw from this great dome, in honor the our 55th speaker. this is one of those moments when you wonder how the honoree would feel. especially when it's someone like tip who never quite held back his opinions. perhaps he would have enjoyed seeing leaders from opposite sides of the aisle come together to give him a well deserved hurrah. surely he would have gotten a kick of being flanked by a

building named after hubert humphrey and jerry ford, also leaders from opposite ends of the political spectrum. tip actually considered mr. humphrey one of his heroes. and he had one of humphrey's quotes put up on the wall in his office. now, as for jerry ford, they didn't frankly agree on much of anything, but tip counted president ford as a true friend. and since friends are always honest enough with one another, when the new president would explain what legislation he wanted to pass, tip would say, well, jerry, that's not going anywhere. but, sure, send it over anyway if that's what you want to do. that was tip. so of course would also be pleased to see us down here telling an old story or two. now he'll stand in good company and as a representative provide the folks back home with yet another source of pride.

having said all that, tip might have had one small complaint about today's occasion. a proud partisan, tip relished nothing more than a close vote. one that would give him a chance to do just a last bit of -- a little more rangeling as he tried to secure the vote. today when the roll is called on this bill, however, the outcome is likely to be unanimous. a reflection of this body's gratitude and appreciation for the gentleman from cambridge. i would urge the whole house to join me in supporting this resolution. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. >> reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from massachusetts. mr. capuano: i'd like to yield one minute to the once and future speaker of this house, the current minority leader, ms. pelosi. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the minority

leader. ms. pelosi: i thank the gentleman for yielding, and i thank speaker boehner for his leadership and cooperation in bringing this legislation to the floor. thank you, mr. speaker. tip o'neill says the speaker of the house was millie, his wife, and i had the privilege of serving in the office that tip o'neill had when he was speaker of the house and having in my possession the gavel that was given to speaker o'neill when he became the leader, not yet the speaker, and it's waterford, mr. speaker, so you could only use it one time. and perhaps you would use it today, but you made this possible, all of us who admire tip o'neill are faithful to you for that. i thank you, mr. speaker, for your very fine words. two weeks ago members of congress joined members of the o'neill family and many others to plant a tree in honor of the life of speaker tip o'neill.

today we honor tip again by passing a resolution to inscribe his name on the federal building , lasting tribute to the service and leadership to the state of massachusetts, to the house of representatives, and his leadership for all americans. i thank again speaker boehner for leading this bipartisan effort to remember the great tip o'neill. together on the floor of the house. tip once wielded the speaker's gavel with courage, dignity, and grace. i thank you, mr. capuano, for joining the committee to bring this to the floor of the house. and you served in the same district that tip o'neill did, what an honor. i serve in the office that he had, what an honor. it is fitting that tip o'neill jr. federal build will go stand alonk side the office building named for his dear friend and public servant, former

president, jerald ford. as speaker boehner indicated. they'll be neighbors. indeed, disliking on their long partnership, president ford once said, tip o'neill is an outstanding political leader and patriot who always carried the torch for the congress and the american people. carrying the torch. the statement captured the essence of his success, his extraordinary leadership, his un flinching patriotism, his belief in the common good, his devotion to the unending fight for a more perfect union. yes, mr. president, tip carried this torch for all who believed the purpose of politics is to improve the lives of others. tip carried the torch for the underdog, for the person on the street, for the families struggling to pay the bills. he carried the torch of opportunity, equality, and to every budget negotiation, every legislative battle, every

bipartisan agreement. tip carried the personal -- personal manifestation of the american dream and he carried the torch for everyone else who strived to achieve it. for tip, standing on principle is not about political gain, it was about fighting for the voiceless and for the aspirations of the middle class. for tip the effort to reform and save social security was not about figures on a page, it was about the seniors struggling to make ends meet. that's why we were always so proud of what he did with preg reagan to prolong the life of social security. for tip floor debates were not about abstract numbers. they were about people and consequences of a policy to their lives. those are the values that enabled tip o'neill to leave his giant footprint, giant footprint on the course of american history. this is the spirit that made him

a legend that allowed him to help the middle class lives, to ensure his actions would strengthen the character of our country in his time and for future generations. by his leadership and his patriotism, tip o'neill was a proud champion of his district, his state, and our nation. with gavel in hand, he he was a giant in the congress. for his record of progress, he was a bona fide american hero. by adding his name to a federal building, in sight of the capitol he loved, we all carry the torch of the legacy of tip o'neill. i hope that we have not the close vote that would have been fun maybe at the time but a unanimous vote that shows that we share tip's values and take pride in his leadership as he stands with -- as a neighbor to president gerald ford. thank you, i yield back to the

gentleman. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back. who seeks recognition? mr. capuano: the gentleman reserves? >> reserve. mr. capuano: i'd like to recognize the ranking member of the transportation committee, mr. nick rahall, yield to him two minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the distinguished gentleman from massachusetts for yielding -- mr. rahall:00 i thank the distinguished gentleman from massachusetts for yielding me time and joining with our democratic leader and speaker of the house in supporting the pending measure. speaker thomas p. o'neill, other wise known as tip, was first elected to represent the 11th congressional district of massachusetts in 1952 and he continued to serve for 17 terms. during his 34 years in congress, he served as the chair of the select committee on campaign expenditures, majority whip,

majority leader, and finally speaker of the house. speaker o'neill holds a special place in my own congressional career because when i was sworn in at the beginning of my first term in congress in 1977, it was also tip's first year as speaker of this body. he held that post for a decade, making him the second longest tenured speaker in the history of the high pressure system. there are a litany of legislative accomplishments that could be described as defining the career of thomas p. o'neill, however his most remarkable guide post was his dedication to federal programs that addressed the needs of the poor, the middle class, the sick, the fallen, and our working men and women across this great country. speaker o'neill is an unabashed supporter of the new deal, and believed that government had the ability and the responsibility to provide for those in need and

champion programs like public education, social security, unemployment insurance, medicare, medicaid, supplemental security income for low-income people with disabilities just to top the tip of the iceberg. part of his success in protecting and growing these programs was speaker o'neill's talent in forging political consensus. we have heard that described already. his superb political instincts, and being a pragmatic deal maker which allowed him to take on the day-to-day responsibilities of holding his caucus together while advancing his commitment to liberalism. we have heard the speaker reference speaker o'neill and his popular saying that all politics is local. believe me that was my first advice in coming to this body and it's my advice to this very day that i have taken to heed. he has over -- he had over 50 years of combined public service to both the massachusetts

statehouse and our house of representatives. a true public servant in every sense of the word. i'm sure my colleagues will join in a bipartisan round of support for naming of this federal building after come mass p. tip o'neill. i yield back my time to the gentleman from massachusetts, mr. capuano. >> i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from massachusetts. mr. capuano: i yield two minutes to the gentlewoman from massachusetts, ms. tsongas. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from massachusetts is recognized. ms. tsongas: i thank you. i thank my colleague, mr. capuano, for yielding to me. i rise today in strong support of h.r. 6604, which recognizes and honors the legacy of former speaker of the house, tip o'neill. tip o'neill had a long and distinguished career in public service as we have heard. this was clearly an o'neill family value as so many have

carried on with such distinction. tip, a friend and mentor to me and my late husband, paul, when paul served with him in the house, is often remembered for coining the phrase, all politics is local. as we in massachusetts are so often reminded, his imprint has shaped the thriving boston of today and protected the glories of cape cod for tomorrow. and we treasure his innate ability to bring together with good humor and unwavering purpose people from both sides of the aisle, a singular aspect to his legacy, which is most embodied in his work with president reagan to strengthen social security, protecting this critically important program for decades. i thank speaker boehner and leader pelosi for introducing this legislation that will name a building in the shadow of this great capital after a great speaker, tip o'neill, thank you, i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back. >> reserve the balance of my

time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from massachusetts. mr. capuano: i'd like to yield two minutes to the gentleman from massachusetts, mr. mcgovern. you the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the gentleman from massachusetts. mr. mcgovern: thank you. i thank the gentleman for yielding. and for his leadership. i know those of us in the massachusetts delegation always welcome the opportunity to pay tribute to tip o'neill. a giant of this house and legend in massachusetts politics. for decades, tip o'neill represented the people of his district with distinction, hard work, and wit. and for 10 years he led this house as speaker. tip got into politics for all the right reasons, to help people. as a new deal democrat he believed while government doesn't have all the answers, it can and should be a force for good. and while he may be best remembered for his admonition that all politics is local, and he always put his constituents first, he always made a great -- he also made a great mark in national and international affairs. he fought to protect and preserve social security and the

safety net. he worked with peace in northern island and against the war in vietnam. and he was a great source of advice to me and so many others. when you are running for office, always ask for someone's vote and always say thank you. never judge a beauty pageant or pick a raffle number because you'll make one person happy and hundreds of people mad. in his second term, tip was appointed to the house rules committee. when he entered the democratic leader, my old boss and mentor, joe moakley, took that seat. when he died i was given the honor of taking his place on the rules committee. so i feel a strong personal responsibility to maintain tip o'neill's legacy. i want to thank the leadership for bringing this vote to the floor and the effort to designate this federal building in honor of tip o'neill. finally, mr. speaker, i want to say this, tip o'neill believed that politics was an honorable profession. . he believed government should be for the poor, the vulnerable and the elderly and the believed in extending letters of opportunity to people

regardless of their background could succeed. i hope all of us remember, in the congress and the white house, as we enter the discussions on the budget, i hope we remember tip o'neill's example. he was a champion for those who had no voice and we should be too. i yield back my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yield back. the gentleman from california reserves the gentleman from massachusetts. >> i'd like to yield two minutes to the dean of our delegation from massachusetts, mr. markey. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes mr. markey. mr. markey: i thank the gentleman, thank the gentleman so much for holding this special session. mr. speaker, i was elected to congress 36 years ago. and my first day in congress, my first vote in congress, in january of 1977, was a vote for who would be the speaker of the house.

the republicans were all going to vote for john rhodes, a very good man. the democrats were going to society for tip o'neill. the tradition is that on that first vote, on that first day, the member has to stand to actually say the name of the person for whom they are voting. so the first word i ever uttered on the floor of the house, standing at my chair, at the top of my voice, was just saying o'neill. and with that, i had voted for tip o'neill to begin his term, first term, as speaker of the house. he was a social security democrat, but he could work with ronald reagan to save social security. he was a man committed to ending the nuclear arms race and he led that fight here on the house floor but he did so

while ensuring that there would be a complete preservation of the security of the united states of america. he always asked two questions on every issue out here on the house floor -- is it fair? and does it work? and he said that if it could not pass that two-part test, then it should not become a law in the united states of america. he passed a comprehensive energy plan off the floor of this house. protected social security, advanced so many other issues. a in my opinion, tip o'neill was the elder -- was the albert einstein of politics. he knew what it took in order to make this institution work. he knew what it took to reach across the aisle, to find people of good will, to make this chamber work and to advance the agenda for this country.

so for for me, it's a great honor to be here because buildings, as we name them, also embody that person. it is my hope that as people walk in and out of this building for the 21st century, that they think about who tip o'neill was. they think about, yes, how much he loved political war, but at the same time he brought his own personal warmth to that, that it was not separated here on the house floor. it is my hope in naming this building perhaps this process this great institution, can be an nated by his great legacy and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from california reserves his time. >> mr. speaker, i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from massachusetts. >> i have no more speakers. i would like to thank those members who spoke on behalf of mr. o'neill, thanking very much the speaker and minority leader i will tell you that most of

the o'neill family and i will tell you that tip would be proud of them. he was proud of the one he is knew and the one he is didn't know as well. every one that i know is good, solid stock people who know what they're doing and know who they represent in their lives pause they see me on the -- on a regular basis. i want to thank them for being so tenacious in reminding us tip o'neill, who he was, what he was, and from living in his shadow and living the type of life he would have been proud of. i would also like to just close out by simply saying, again, thank you for this congress, for providing not just me, but all of us, the opportunity to come have these debates, have these discussions, have these fights. there's nothing wrong with a good fight over important issues. and to understand that each of us brings to this body exactly what tip o'neill brought to this body and what the people who come after us will bring to this body a commitment to this country a commitment to their state, to their district, and to the people they represent,

tip o'neill epitomizes all, and that's why we are here today to reck him and through him what this country means. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. >> i support passage of this legislation and urge my colleagues to do the same and yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass h.r. 6604? those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 being in the affirmative, the bull is passed and without objection the motion to reconsider is laid on the table.

for what purpose does the gentleman from florida seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, i move to suspend the rules and pass h.r. 6374 to designate the facility of the department of veterans' affairs located at 180 martin drive in carrollton, georgia, as the trinka davis veterans village. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. caller: h r. 6374, a bill to designate the facile i have to the dotcht veterans affairs located at 180 martin drive in carrollton, georgia, as the trinka davis veterans village. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from florida, mr. miller, and the gentlewoman

from florida, ms. brown, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from florida. mr. miller: i yield myself such time as i i might consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognize. mr. miller: the legislation before us does in fact designate the veterans affairs building in carrollton georgia as the trinka davis veterans village. trinka was a businessperson who desired that her estate be used to benefit veterans and their families. following her death, the trinka davis estate contacted the v.a. popt in the -- hospital in the area and determined there was a need to better serve the vet veterans in northwest georgia. as such, the foundation worked with local v.a. leaders to plan, design and construct a clinic and presented the $17 million gift in kind to the v.a. the 73,883 square feet clinic,

which opened to veterans in september, provides primary, home-based and mental health care and a number of specialty services including physical and occupational therapy. it encompasses a 42-bed community living center that provides rehabilitation services and long-term care. as she was not a veteran herself but mrs. davis' generous gift was already improving the lives and health oand the daily lives of georgia's veterans and their families and will no doubt continue to do so for generations to come. it's only proper that the facility she provided the funding for bear her name as recognition of her outstanding service to the veteran hofse state of georgia. it's received the unanimous support of the georgia delegation, the georgia major veterans service organizations have all supported it and also hyde like to note that

according to prere-prelame -- preliminary cost estimates provided by c.b.o., it represents a minimal cost of less than $500,000 to the federal government this legislation is sponsored by my good friend and colleague, dr. phil gingrey, and i want to thank dr. gingrey for his leadership in spearheading this provision and for his steadfast support of veterans not only in the state of georgia but across the nation. i want to urge all my colleagues to join me in supporting h.r. 6374 and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the chair recognizes the gentlelady from florida. ms. brown: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise today to offer my support of h.r. 6374, a bill to name the facility of the department of veterans' affairs in carrollton, georgia, as the trinka davis veterans village. mrs. davis served with great distinction as a businesswoman,

but one of her greatest contributions to our nation can be seen in her commitment to the care and well being that was -- for those who have worn the uniforms of our country. she paid a visit to pearl harbor as a teenager and was touched by the sacrifice of service members. her brother served in the united states army. later hasker -- after her successful career in the textile sfri, ms. davis continued her work helping wounded veterans and their families in and in 2004 she founded the trinka davis foundation to honor service veterans, particularly in the state of georgia. i commend the foundation and the atlanta v.a. for working closely together to build this facility which will serve as a community living center and a medical office to provide primary care, primary health care and other important services to over 3,000 veterans. while mrs. davis is no longer

with us, her long standing commitments to our nation's heroes live on and make her a perfect candidate for the naming of the veterans village in carrollton. mr. speaker, i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady reserves the balance of her time. the gentleman from florida is recognized. mr. miller: thanks again, mr. speaker, i want to yield such time as he might consume to the sponsor of this piece of legislation, the gentleman from georgia, dr. gingrey. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the gentleman from georgia. mr. gingrey: mr. speaker, i rise today in support of h.r. 6374, a bill to designate the department of veterans' affairs facility in carrollton, georgia, as the trinka davis veterans village. mr. speaker, much of what i'm going to say has been said by the distinguished chairman of the veterans affairs committee, the gentleman mr. florida, mr. miller, as well as ranking

member, the gentlewoman from florida, ms. brown. but i thank them for giving me the opportunity to repeat and maybe elaborate a bit because it deserves to be said. katherine, better known as trinka, davis was a businesswoman from carroll county who founded the trinka davis foundation in 2004 after realizing the struggles many service men and women faced upon returning from both iraq and afghanistan. as has been stated, though not a veteran herself, through her generosity, mrs. davis performed an outstanding service for the veterans of northwest georgia. mr. speaker, trinka made note of the reports of difficulties that many returning veterans and their respective families were face, loss of limbs, traumatic brain injuries, post-traumatic stress syndrome, unemployment and los of their homes.

-- and loss of their homes. though she is no longer with us, her memory lives on. trinka davis left almost her entire estate, over $18 million, to this foundation, which has used it to construct a first class health facility to aid our wounded warriors in their recovery and treatment. i've been there and i've seen it. i was there at the ribbon cutting ceremony this past year. it's a beautiful facility in my district in carrollton. mr. speaker, with the war in afghanistan, iraq and the unrest around the globe, the united states has more than 196,000 active duty service men and women that put their lives on the line night and day to protect our families and our freedoms. these men and women accepted the call of duty leaving behind their loved ones and life as they know it to protect the lives of us and so many others. when our soldiers return from battle, sometimes they don't get the support and the assistance that they deserve.

simply put, we owe them more. just as they have answered the call to serve our country, we must answer the call to serve them. this is what trinka davis did and why i rise today and i'm so honored to be part of the naming of this carrollton v.a. facility in her honor. thanks to trinka's generosity and the tireless dedication of her foundation, the new clinic was dedicated to the department of veterans' affairs just this past august. the dwoors opened to veterans to receive outpatient treatment on september 24, 2012, and in the coming month the clinic will also include a 42-bed community living center. while providing a variety of services including primary care, physical therapy and outpatient mental health service, the facility will serve 3,000 veterans and will allow them to receive treatment closer to their homes. mr. speaker, i believe that

like our veterans, mrs. davis is indeed a hero. she recognized the needs of veterans and worked tirelessly to meet them. the trinka davis foundation ensured that mrs. davis' commitment to veterans and to their families in the carrollton community and beyond would be preserved through construction of this health facility. i ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing trinka davis' selfless actions by supporting h.r. 6374 and i yield back. . the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from florida. mr. miller: mr. speaker, that would be the only other speaker that we have. so we are prepared to close. ms. brown: i have no other requests for time. i urge support for house bill 6374 and yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the question is, will the house suspend the rules -- the gentleman from florida. mr. miller: mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five

legislative days to revise and extend their remarks on h.r. 6374, and i thank you once again for your willingness to yield time. encourage all my members to support this legislation. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. without objection, the question is, will the house suspend the rules and pass h.r. 6374. so many as are in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 of those voting having responded in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the bill is passed, and without the motion to reconsider -- and without objection the motion to reconsider is laid upon the table.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from arizona rise? >> mr. speaker, i move that the house suspend the rules and pass h.r. 57 8. the speaker pro tempore: the

clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 5788, a bill to designate the facility of the united states postal service located at 103 center street west in eatonville, washington, as the national park ranger margaret anderson post office. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from arizona, mr. gosar, and the gentleman from pennsylvania, mr. altmire, will each control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from arizona. mr. gosar: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on the bill under consideration. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. gosar: mr. speaker, h.r. 57 8, introduced by the gentleman from washington, mr. reichert, would designate the facility of the united states postal service located at 103 center street west in eatonville, washington, as the national park ranger margaret anderson post office.

the bill is co-sponsored by the entire washington state delegation, and was favorably reported by the committee on the oversight and government reform on june 27. mr. speaker, while we'll consider multiple bills this afternoon to designate multiple facilities, this bill gives us the opportunity to honor those who wear a different type of uniform, our countries' national park rangers. specifically this legislation would name the post office in eatonville, washington, for margaret anderson, a national park ranger who was shot and killed in the line of duty on new year's day in 2012. ranger anderson worked to keep the visitors of mount rainier safe and on new year's day she gave the ultimate sacrifice for the safety of others. for going above and beyond a park ranger's duty to protect and third, i thank ranger anderson and all those who serve in our national parks for their service and dedication to our country. mr. speaker, i urge my colleagues to join me in strong

support of this bill. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves his tile. the chair recognizes mr. altmire. mr. altmire: mr. speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: so ordered. mr. altmire: mr. speaker, i'm pleased to join my colleagues in support of h.r. 5788, a bill to designate the facility of the united states postal service in eatonville, washington, as the national park ranger margaret anderson post office. in accordance with committee requirements, the bill is co-sponsored by all members of the washington delegation. margaret anderson was born near toronto and grew number connecticut and westfield, new jersey. she received her bachelor's degree in fisheries and wildlife science from kansas state university in 1999, and her masters degree in biology from fort hayes state university in kansas. she loved the outdoors and was said to be at peace in nature. margaret anderson was living her dream, working with her husband at mount rainier national park

as a united states park ranger. her duties were not confined to patrolling, but ranged from supervision of snowplow areas to medical coordination and instruction for her fellow staff members. anderson was described by her colleagues as a candid and honest co-worker who could always bring a smile to your face. on new year's day, anderson blocked the road with her patrol car to hinder the escape of a man who crashed through a checkpoint. little did she know at that time that the man was a suspect in an earlier shooting that wounded four people. the suspect shot at her while she was still blocking the road with her patrol car and she was fatally wounded. mr. speaker, national park ranger margaret anderson made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty. i urge passage of this bill to honor her on behalf of all of our colleagues in the house, especially the washington dedication. and this -- passage of this bill is dedicated to her family and

to the united states park service. i urge passage of h.r. 578 and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from arizona is recognized. mr. gosar: thank you, mr. speaker. i would now like to yield as much time as he may consume to my distinguished colleague from the state of washington, sponsor of this legislation, mr. reichert. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from washington is recognized. mr. reichert: i thank the gentleman for yielding. mr. speaker, i rise today in support of h.r. 5788, legislation to designate the post office located at 103 center street west in eatonville, washington, as the national park ranger margaret anderson post office. you have heard a little bit about some of her history, educational past, and some of her family history, but let me tell you this really hits close to home for me as a law enforcement officer in my previous life. i spent 33 years in the law

enforcement profession. margaret anderson was a park ranger for four years. at mount rainier national park. eatonville, the little up to of eatonville, is nestled in a little valley, right at the bottom of beautiful mount rainier. where margaret anderson lived. it's called the gateway to the national park. the gateway to mount rainier. the gateway where folks come to visit, reflect on their lives, and drink. it's a peaceful, serene usually. peaceful, serene, and beautiful place to visit. margaret's job usually was to guide folks, give direction, patrol the area, offer first aid, and just in general be the loving and kind person that she's been described here today

and after her death and throughout the past year by friends and family who dearly miss her. but on new year's day things changed. her job took on a total different meaning. she was now the plow textor -- protector of those people who came to reflect and dream. their lives were in danger. and she stepped in front, she parked her car, blocked this crazed man with a firearm. many say that her actions saved many lives that day. but it didn't save hers. she died. she died protecting those she served. and i think it's only fitting because of that sacrifice and the service to that community and the love that that community has had for margaret and her

husband who also served as a ranger but has now moved on, his memories there are too hard for him to bear, it's only fitting that this small little town with this small little post office has the name of margaret anderson attached to that building in honor of her service and her sacrifice to that community. i urge my colleagues to support the passage of this bill and i yield back my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. who seeks recognition? mr. altmire: mr. speaker, we have no further speakers on our side and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from arizona is recognized. mr. gosar: mr. speaker, i urge all members to support the passage of h.r. 5788, and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the question is, will the house suspend the rules and pass h.r. 57 8. so many as are in favor say aye. those opposed, no.

in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 of those voting having responded in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the bill is passed, and without objection the motion to reconsider is laid upon the table. froms the gentleman from arizona rise? mr. gosar: mr. speaker, i move that the house suspend the rules and pass h.r. 5738. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 5738, a bill to designate the facility of the united states postal service located at 15285 samohin drive in macomb, michigan, as the lance corporal anthony a. dilisio clinton-macomb carrier annex. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from arizona, mr. gosar, and the gentleman from pennsylvania, mr. altmire, will each control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from arizona. mr. gosar: thank you, mr. speaker. i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five

legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. gosar: mr. speaker, h.r. 5738, introduced by the gentlelady from michigan, mrs. miller, would designate the facility of the united states postal service located at 15285 samohin drive in macomb, michigan, as the lance corporate anthony a. dilisio clinton d.c. macomb carrier annex. the bill is co-sponsored by the entire michigan state delegation and favorably reported by the committee on overtight and government reform on september 20. mr. speaker, it is altogether fitting and proper we name this post office in macomb, michigan, for lance corporate dilisio, a selfless patriot who made the ultimate sacrifice in afghanistan at 28 years of age. he was shot and killed by enemy fighters during a patrol he

volunteered for. the lance corporal and all our fighting men and women are true heroes. i'm thankful to have the opportunity to stand before this chamber and express my sincere gratitude for all that our service members do and all that they sacrifice each and every day. mr. speaker, i urge my colleagues to join me in strong support of this bill and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves his time. mr. altmire. mr. altmire: mr. speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. altmire: mr. speaker, i'm pleased to join my colleagues in consideration of h.r. 5738, a bill to designate the facility of the united states postal service in macomb, michigan, as the lance corporate anthony dilisio clinton-macomb carrier annex. in accordance with committee requirements, the bill is co-sponsored by all members of the michigan dell delegation. after graduating dakota high school, anthony enlisted in the united states marine corps. after recruit training, he was

assigned to the first battalion, sixth marine regiment, second marine division, two marine expi dishary force out of camp lejeune, north carolina. he was deployed to afghanistan in december of 2009. while on patrol in the helmund province, several marines were attacked by insurgents. he was fatally wounded. leavingp behind his parents and fiance and host of siblings and friends who all remember anthony as a personal guy who always wanted to serve the people. when we rename this postal facility in his honor, generations to come will know of his heroism and sacrifice. mr. speaker, i urge passage of h.r. 5738 and i reserve the balance of my time. . the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentleman from arizona is recognize. >> i yield such time as she may

consume to my distinguished colleague from michigan, mrs. miller. mrs. miller: thank you for yielding. throughout the history of our great nation, american patriots have answered the nation's call to defend the freedoms we hold dear. anthony dilisio was one of those. he was an all-american kid with a -- was a member of the swim team and baseball team at contact high school. after graduating from high school, he could have gone on to -- at dakota high school. after graduating from high school, he could have gone on to college or to work in his family's business but against the wishes of his family he enlisted in the marine corps in august of that year. he was assigned to the first battalion, sixth marine regiment, second marine expeditionary force based at camp lejeune north carolina. he shipped out to afghanistan

for combat operation in support of operation enduring freedom. on may 30 of 2010, he was told by his superiors he could take the day off. that wasn't anthony. that night, lance corporal dilisio went on patrol with his marine brothers when they were ambushed just outside camp and a battle ensusmede lance corporal anthony dilisio and a fellow marine were killed just one month shy of their return. lance corporal anthony dilisio loved his country and loved the marine corps he was fought with honor and distinction to preserve our liberty. in this great nation, we honor heroes like lance corporal dilisio. while nothing we can do will fully honor his brave service and his sacrifice in defense of freedom, we have a responsibility to do what we can. i ask every member of this

house to join me in honoring this american hero, this great american patriot, by supporting this legislation which will designate the postal facility in macomb township, michigan thearks lance corporal tan thatny a. dilisio clinton-macomb carrier annex. he was survived by his father, by his mother who recently passed away, his brothers, his sisters. we honor them for sharing this person who they loved so much with all of us. we cannot remove their sorrow for the loss of anthony but we can show them that the spire nation honors his service and sacrifice and of course the motto of the united states marine corps is semper fidelis, always faithful. faith to feel their duty, faithful to freedom and liberty, faith to feel this great nation. anthony was a true marine and

was always faithful. i ask every member of the body to join me in honoring this great patriot, lance corporal anthony dilisio. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the gentleman from pennsylvania. >> i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from arizona. >> i urge all members to support the passing an of h.r. 5738 and yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass h.r. 5738. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 being in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the bill is pass and without objection the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. for what purpose does the gentleman from arizona seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, i move that the house suspend the rules and pass h.r. 3892 as amended.

the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. caller: h.r. 3892, a bill to designate the facility of the united states postal service located at 8771 auburn folsom road in roseville, california thearks private first class victor a. due post office. -- a. dew post office. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from arizona, mr. go sar and the gentleman from pennsylvania will control 20 minutes. mr. gosar: i ask that all members have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so order. mr. gosar: h.r. 3892 introduced by the gentleman from california, mr. mcclintock, would designate the facility of the united states postal service located at 8771 auburn

folsom road in roseville, california, as the private first class victor a. dew post office. this bill was favorably reported by the oversight and government reform committee. it's entirely fitting we name this post office after marine corporal lance corporal dew who gave his life defending free dm. lance corporal dew and all our fighting men and women are heroes. naming this post office is a small but fitting gesture to the brave men and women who are the reason that this country is free. mr. speaker, i urge my colleagues to join me in strong support of this bill and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves his time. mr. altmire is recognized. mr. altmire: i yield myself

such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: so ordered. mr. altmire: i join my colleagues in supporting h r. 3892 to designate the facility of the united states post office in roseville, california, after victor a. dew. after enlisting with the marines in 2009, victor chose the infantry, he wanted to be on the front line making a difference to protect his country. after completing recruiting training, he joined the third battalion, fifth marine regiment, first marine division, marine expeditionary force as an anti-tank assault man. during his first tour of duty in afghanistan, while conducting combat operations in the he willman province on -- in the helmun province, he and

three others were killed in action by an improvised explosive device. his duty reflects great credit on himself and was in keeping with the highest traditions of the united states marine corps. he leaves mind his parents, his brother kyle, his fiancee and a whole host of family and friends who continue to miss him dearly. i urge passage of h.r. 3892 to nonnor -- honor the service and sacrifice of lance corporal victor a. dew. i reserve my time. sproy gentleman is recognized. mr. gosar: i yield such time as he may consume to the sponsor of this legislation, mr. mcclintock. mr. mcclintock: mr. speaker, i never met victor dew but i feel i've gotten to know him since the day he came home to granite bay to be laid to rest in a hero's grave in the midst of his family, his friends and neighbors, his community, and

his comrades in arms. that day, i discovered that his next door neighbor is a longtime acquaintance of mine. he twheached young man grow up aened he was absolutely devastated. in his bitter sorrow he represented the anguish of an entire community that had watched victor dew grow up to be an always good natured, always helpful, always pleasant lad who everybody knew was destinned to do great things. that same day i met victor dew's younger brother kyle and i think i got a fitting glimpse of vic in his younger brother. kyle was at a table with a group of his grade school friends, when i offered my condolences, his friends say -- said, we came to cheer him up and he's cheering us up. that day, i met victor dew's parents, patty and. to whose intense pride in their son infused with sorrow and a

transcendent dignity i can't put into words. president lincoln may have put it best in a letter when he spoke of laying so costly a sacrifice for freedom. i've seen it offering company to other bereaved families in a way i think only those who have gone through such a loss can understand. i frankly cannot begin to understand what they've gone through and continue to go through every day. whenever i try to imagine myself in my shoes, my moined recoils. i can only marvel at the strength they summon. time does not heal all wounds. for these gold star families, every day is memorial day and every day their grief is just as real as when the casualty officer appeared at their threshold. at a gold star dinner several

years ago, i confided to our host and said, i still don't know how to say to these families. she smiled and said, just ask them about their sons. let me tell you about victor dew. he was one of those sunny personalities who lifted the spirits of those arnt him. they'd be feeling down and victor lifted them up. i have no doubt kyle got that quality from his older brother he attended granite bay high school where he played on the football team but his real passion was martial arts where he achieved a double black belt in jujitsu. hi jujitsu -- his jujitsu teacher said, when i met him, he was like a 30-year-old walking around in a 13-year-old's body. he was wise beyond his years. in high school he met a girl named courtney and they both

attended sierra college an began dating. victor had big plans. he planned of becoming -- he'd dreamed of becoming a marine. he hung a marine corps flag over his bed when he was 12 and woke up under that flag every day and the proud words imployplaysonned on it, semper fidelis. he was fully aware of the dangerous he'd faced. yet in 2009 he enlisted. courtney asked him why and he said, it's my dream. i feel like i need to do this. one of his comrades put it this way -- victor lived every day with a purpose like it was his last. he had a joke to tell you or a way to make your day better. he'd have tough days and instead of being negative he'd say,s the kind of stuff i love for. he had everything to live for. before shipping out, he brought courtney to one of his favorite places in the world, disneyland, where he asked her to be his wife. they were to be married when he returned.

in the marines, he was offered a posting to a ceremonial position in the presidential detail here in washington but he turned it down. he believed his duty and destiny was to keep the fight away from our shores, away from his family and his country and so he chose combat even when he'd been offered safe and honorable service at home. instofede a prestigious presidential detail he'd been offered, he chose to become one of the boifs 3-5, third battalion, fifth regiment of the fifth marine division. he deployed to afghanistan on september 25, 2010. less than three weeks later on together 13, lance corporal victor dew died from his wounds after his column was ambushed and an explosive device destroyed his vehicle. lost with him were three other fallen heroes.

he was brought home in a black hearse. courtney had already bought her wedding dress. the day before the funeral, she put it on, had a wedding photographer take her portrait and put that in the coffin with him. he was given full military honors a flag given to the grieving mother on behalf of a grateful nation. 777 days have passed since that awful day in he will mand province. those 777 days, victor dew might have come safely home, he could have married courtney, and he'd be well embarked on a long and happy life and promising career. as painful as it is to reflect on what might have been, it's important that we do so because in that pain is the measure of how much these young men gave up and how much their families grove for theme. -- for them.

they won't grow old to enjoy the blessings of liberty they diood -- die sod secure for our country and for -- died to secure for our country and for a country half a world away. tourists will often watch the marines at the tomb of the unknown soldiers, honoring the memory of these soldiers but tourists don't often show up during hurricanes. or in driving snowstorms or at 2:00 a.m. in sleet and hail. but the old guard does. they commit two years of their lives to this service under the strictest of conditions. i askedse why, why do you do this? and he said, because, sir, we want to demonstrate to our fellow americans that we will never forget. victor dew will not be forgotten. his family will see to that, his friends and neighbors will

see to that. his marine brothers will see to that. and his country will see to that. today the united states house of representatives considers today the house of representatives considers legislation to name the post office to viktor due in his honor as a token of that commitment. someday this post office will be gone. someday we will all be gone. but the selfless deeds and quiet patriotism of young men like victor due are record not in plax and buildings and monuments, but rather in the eternal and indestructible archives of time itself. they will not tarnish or paid. they will stand for the ages as testament to the value of liberty, the character of those who step forth to defend it, and most profound lesson of the true meaning of the words that victor

due awakened under from the time he was 12 and that he now sleeps under for all eternity, semper fidel list. yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the chair will receive a message from the senate. the messenger: mr. speaker, a message from the senate. the secretary: mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: madam secretary. the secretary: i have been directed by the senate to inform the house that the senate has passed s. 3642, an act to clarify the scope of the act of 1996 in which the concurrence of the house is requested. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from pennsylvania is recognized. mr. altmire: mr. speaker, having no further speakers on our time, i yield back the balance of our time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time of the the gentleman from arizona is recognized. mr. gosar: mr. speaker, i urge all members to support the passage of h.r. 3892, and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the question is, will the house

suspend the rules and pass h.r. 3892, as amended. so many as are in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 of those voting having responded in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the bill is passed, and without objection the motion to reconsider is laid upon the table. without objection, the title is amended. for what purpose does the gentleman from arizona seek recognition? mr. gosar: mr. speaker, i move that the house suspend the rules and pass h.r. 233 . the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 2338. a bill to designate the facility of united states postal service located at 600 florida avenue in cocoa, florida, as the harry t. and harriette moore post office. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from arizona, mr. gosar, and the gentleman from missouri, mr. clay, will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from arizona. mr. gosar: thank you, mr.

speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. gosar: mr. speaker, h.r. 2338, introduced by the gentleman from florida, mr. posey, will designate the facility of the united states postal service located at 600 florida avenue in cocoa, florida, as the harry t. and harriette moore post office. the bill is co-sponsored by the entire florida state delegation, and was favorably reported by the committee on oversight and government reform on june 27. mr. speaker, it is all together fitting and proper that we name this post office in cocoa, florida, for harriette and harry moore, leaders of the civil rights movement in florida. harry moore established the first branch of the naacp in

brow ward county, florida, and considered the first martyr of the 1950's era civil rights movement. sadly on christmas night in 1951, the moores were killed by a bomb planted beneath their home. mr. speaker, i urge my colleagues to join me in strong support of this bill and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the chair recognizes mr. clay from missouri. mr. clay: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. mr. speaker, i, too, want to join with my colleague from arizona in consideration of h.r. 2338 to name the post office in cocoa, florida, after harry t. and harriette moore. in accordance with committee requirements, h.r. 2338 is co-sponsored by all members of the florida delegation and was reported out of the oversight committee by unanimous consent.

it honors the legacy of harry t. and harry moore who both fought tirelessly for civil rights and against voter discrimination. in 1934, harry and harriette opened the first naacp branch in the face of discrimination. the moores succeeded in establishing additional naac pchtbranches throughout florida. in addition, the moores worked with the progressive voters league to registered over 100,000 african-americans in the state. harry's hard work and determination led him to become the president of the florida state conference of naacp branches. tragically as was mentioned in 1951 harry and harriette moore were fatally injured when a bomb

planted underneath their house exploded. the moores were survived by their only daughter, juanita. mr. speaker, i urge the passage of this bill to commemorate the legacy of harry t. and harriette moore and reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from arizona is recognized. mr. gosar: thank you, mr. speaker. i would now like to yield as much time as he may consume to my distinguished colleague from the state of florida, the sponsor of this legislation, mr. posey. the speaker pro tempore: mr. posey is recognized. mr. posey: i thank the gentleman for yielding. mr. speaker, today we take an important step to honor the lives of harry t. moore and his wife, harriette moore. these leaders and the struggle for civil rights were taken from us 61 years ago this christmas. harry t. and harriette moore propelled the struggle for justice and equality far beyond the borders of their home in

brevard county, florida. they are remembered for their dignity, compassion, and emphasis on education. they left a legacy that remains close to the hearts of community leaders and one that is sure to outlast the length of their lives that were so tragically cut short. at a young age the moores were dedicated teachers and educators in our local community. harry began his first job as an elementary school teacher at monroe elementary school in cocoa. that was in 1925. two years later he began a decade of service as a high school principal in titusville. then from 1936 to 1946, he served as the principal and fifth and sixth grade teacher at mims. the couple first met in brevard county when he was serving as a principal and harriette was an elementary school teacher. they were married on christmas day, 1926. and were later blessed with two

daughters. they committed the remainder of their lives to the pursuit of civil justice for african-americans. the moores first founded the brevard county chapter of the naacp in 1934, which led to a statewide naacp conference in 1941. mr. moore served as president of the florida state conference of the naacp chapters, as well as the founder and executive director of the progressive voters league as was mentioned earlier. it was through these channels that the moores championed such issues as equality, education, and voter registration. but their steadfast adherence to equality was not without a price. and both mr. and ms. moore were fired from their teaching jobs and found it difficult to find employment. to proclaim them as pillars of the community would be an understatement. the couple celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary on christmas eve, 1951.

as they celebrated, a bomb exploded beneath their home. mr. moore died on his way to the hospital. and ms. moore died as a result of her injuries nine days later. the tragic murders sparked even more outcry for civil rights. harry t. moore had been called the first american civil rights martyr. brevard county has honored the moore's impact on the community by designating their home site a florida historical heritage landmark creating the harry t. and harriette moore memorial park and interpretive center and naming its justice center after the trail blazering couple. additionally, the naacp posthumously awarded mr. moore the medal for outstanding achievement by a african-american. both these fine citizens undoubtedly touched the lives of others with the dedication, integrity, persistence, compassion, and commitment each

of them so courageously demonstrated. i am pleased that the u.s. house of representatives is acting to pass this legislation to name the u.s. office in cocoa in honor of harry t. and harriette moore. passage of house resolution 2338 will further honor the achievements and sacrifices of the moores. leaders and first martyrs of our nation's modern civil rights era. designating the united states post office at 600 florida avenue in cocoa as the harry t. and harriette moore post office will demonstrate their legacy in a town where mr. moore began his service to others. this will serve as a constant reminder to our community of the important and lasting contributions the moores made to cocoa and the nation. i urge my colleagues to join me in passing this legislation. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes mr. clay. mr. clay: mr. speaker, let me thank and congratulate my good

friend from florida, there posey, for bringing-mr. posey, for bringing to this house, bringing to our attention these two great americans and legacy they left this country. and thank you for doing that. mr. speaker, i have no further speakers. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from arizona is recognized. mr. gosar: mr. speaker, i urge all members to support the passage of h.r. 2338, and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass h.r. 2338. so many as are in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 of those voting having responded in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the bill is passed, and without objection the motion to reconsider is laid upon the table. for what purpose does the gentleman from arizona seek recognition? mr. gosar: mr. speaker, i move that the house suspend the rules and pass h.r. 3912.

the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 3912, a bill to designate the facility of the united states postal service located at 110 mastic road in mastic beach, new york, as the brigadier general nathaniel woodhull post office building. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from arizona, mr. gosar, and the gentleman from missouri, mr. clay, will each control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the -- mr. o gosar from arizona. mr. gosar: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. gosar: mr. speaker, h.r. 3912 introduced by the gentleman from new york, mr. bishop, will designate the facility of the united states postal service located at 110 mastic road in mastic beach, new york, as the brigadier general nathaniel

woodhull post office building. the bill is co-sponsored by the entire new york state delegation, and was favorably reported by the committee on oversight and government reform on june 27. mr. speaker, brigadier general woodhull was a great revolutionary hero. he was a leader of the new york provincial congress and brigadier general of the new york militia during the american revolution. he fought gallonently for the freedom we know today. despite hardship, never did he stray from his dedication to a free united states of america. mr. speaker, brigadier general woodhull is a worthy designee of this postal facility naming and i urge my colleagues to join me in strong support of this bill. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from missouri is recognized. mr. clay: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. i would like to yield as much time as our colleague would like to consume to the gentleman from new york, who is the sponsor of this legislation, mr. bishop.

the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from new york is recognized. mr. bishop: thank you, mr. speaker. i thank mr. clay for yielding my time. mr. speaker, i rise today in honor of an american revolutionary war hero, brigadier general nathaniel woodhull. i urge my colleagues to support my legislation to name the post office in mastic beach, new york, the brigadier general nathaniel woodhull post office building. i thank all of my colleagues in the new york delegation for co-sponsored -- co-sponsoring this bill and the oversight and government reform committee for reporting it to the full house. i also wish to thank the community, an area in my district hit hard by hurricane sandy. this bill is a tribute to a favorite son of mastic and to a community that deserves recognition. . born in 1722, nathaniel woodhull entered the army in

1758. after experiencing battlefield experience in the french and indian war, he rejected the crown's colonial policies. entering politics, woodhull would represent suffolk county in the province of new york assembly in 1769. six years later he led the profpks congress in attempts to break free from british colonialism and establish new york as an independent state. in 1775, woodhull was named brigadier general of the militia of suffolk and queens county due to his vast experience as a former british officer. general woodhull undertook the tactical role of removing imperative american materiel from jamaica queens during the battle of long island by general george washington. outmanned and outmaneuvered, the colonial army was defeated at the battle of long island leading general woodhull and the troops vulnerable.

general woodhull was captured by the 17th british regiment in 1786. he tendered his sword to the british and accepted his detainment. though the details remain inprecise, the british would not -- ordered him to explain god save the king as punishment for his loyalty to the colonies. woodhull refused. instead saying god save us all when pressed by his captors. one british officer lashed out and slashed him across the head and arm with his saber. he was incarcerated aboard a prison shipped docked in new york harbor where he was neglected and contracted gangrene. his agonizing demise and the apparent refusal of the british to allow medical care

galvanized the col nist. nathaniel woodhull died on september 20, 1776, the first high-ranking colonial officer killed in action during the american revolution air war. mr. speaker, the nathaniel woodhull embodied the patriotism and sacrifice of the early revolutionaries and the struggles for american independence. i hope you agree that naming this post office is good and i urge a yes vote on this legislation and i yield back to mr. clay the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. mr. clay: mr. speaker, i also urge my colleagues to pass this bill to continue to promote the legacy of brigadier general nathaniel woodhull and having no further speakers, i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from arizona. mr. gosar: mr. speaker, i urge members to support the passage of h.r. 3912, and i yield back

the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass h.r. 3912. those in favor say aye. those in favor say aye. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 having responded in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the bill is passed, and without objection most moog. -- without objection the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. for what purpose does the gentleman from arizona rise? mr. gosar: mr. speaker, i move that the house suspend the rules and pass h.r. 5954. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 5954, a bill to designate the facility of the united states postal service located at 320 7th street in ellwood city, pennsylvania, as the sergeant leslie h. sabo jr. post office building. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from arizona, mr. gosar, and the gentleman from missouri, mr. clay, will each control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from arizona. mr. gosar: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. i ask unanimous consent that

all members may have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. gosar: mr. speaker, h.r. 5954, introduced by the gentleman from pennsylvania, mr. altmire, would designate the facility of the united states postal service located at 320 7th street in ellwood city, pennsylvania, as the sergeant leslie h. sabo jr. post office building. the bill is co-sponsored by the entire pennsylvania state delegation and was favorably reported by the committee on oversight and government reform on september 20. mr. speaker, sergeant leslie sabo jr. was known for his heroism while serving in the army during the vietnam war. he is a recipient of the united states military's highest declaration, the medal of honor. leading his company during an attack by a neither vietnamese force, sergeant sabo distributed ammunition to his

people and helped retrieve his injured comrades. he was killed from enemy fire. mr. speaker, i'm grateful to sergeant sabo and for those who serve and defend our nation every day. mr. speaker, i ask my colleagues to join me in strong support of this bill and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from missouri is recognized. mr. clay: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. i'm pleased to join my colleagues in support of h.r. 5954, and at this time would like to yield to my friend and colleague from pennsylvania, mr. altmire, as much time as he may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. altmire: mr. speaker, i'm proud to stand here today and speak in support of my legislation to name the ellwood city post office in honor of sergeant leslie sabo. by passing this bill we are playing a small part to pay tribute to an exceptionally

heroic man and family for the sacrifices they made for this country. sergeant sabo grew up in ellwood city, pennsylvania. he reflected the values of the blue collar steel town in which he grew up. kind-hearted, hardworking and dependable. he was drafted in 1969 and left the next year for vietnam. in the early months of 1970, sabo was platooned in vietnam. they were difficult years for him. they pushed through jungeles and rice patties as well as monsoon rains that seemed to never end. in may of that year, sergeant sabo and his platoon were ambushed by the neither vietnamese soldiers in cambodia. amidst heavy fire, he was wounded as he threw himself over a wounded combat to shield him from a grenade blast. despite his wounds and the danger confronting him, sergeant sabo continued to

provide medical cover to the medical evacuation helicopters as they retrieved wounded soldiers until he himself was killed by enemy fire. for his bravery, sergeant sabo was recommended to receive the medal of honor. however, the recommendation languished for decades until it was discovered in the national archives in 1999 by a vietnam veteran from florida. after many more years and some prodding by my friend, congressman gerlach, who is a native of ellwood city, and myself, the department of defense finally announced in 2010 that it would officially recommend to the president the award to sergeant sabo for the medal of honor. i was honored to attend the medal of honor ceremony with my friend, congressman gerlach, this past may. the award was long overdue and much deserved for sergeant sabo, his family and the entire community. sergeant sabo left behind a wife who loved him, a brother

who adored him, patients who cherished him and a community that admired him. after many years, those who called leslie a husband, brother, son and friend are able to celebrate the man that made them also proud. this year ellwood city dedicated a memorial and a bridge to sergeant sabo and this bill will allow the town to continue to celebrate its hero in another fitting tribute by naming the town's post office after medal of honor recipient sergeant sabo. i want to thank chairman issa and congressman cummings, the ranking member, for moving this bill through their committee and allowing it to come to the floor for the vote later this week. i urge my colleagues to support it. i thank mr. clay for yielding me the time, and i yield back my time to mr. clay. mr. clay: mr. speaker, i also urge the passage of h.r. 5954 and will reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from arizona. mr. gosar: mr. speaker, i yield as much time as he may consume to my distinguished colleague

from the state of pennsylvania, mr. gerlach. the speaker pro tempore: mr. gerlach is recognized. mr. gerlach: i thank the gentleman for yielding and thank the speaker for this time and special thanks to my colleague from pennsylvania, mr. altmire, for sponsoring this legislation. i rise to recognize congressional medal of honor hero, army sergeant leslie sabo, who was from my hometown of ellwood city, pennsylvania. sergeant sabo arrived in vietnam on november 14, 1969, and fought on a piece of ground called hill 474. on may 5, 1970, his company moved into cambodia and was engaged in daily firefights for five days. on may 10, his company was caught in a dead liam bush, but despite being wounded three times by enemy fire and from a hand grenade, he continued to purposely draw enemy fire towards himself in order to allow his wounded comrades to

be safely evacuated. tragically, he died of his wounds on that hill. a few years ago after being informed that sergeant sabo's medal of honor review by the department of defense had languished for many years, i was pleased to work with my colleague, representative altmire, to have the department re-evaluate this case and ultimately recommend to the president posthumously to award sergeant sabo the medal of honor. we were both very honored and privileged to be on november 16 at the white house for the president's presentation of this medal of honor award for the sabo family. today i likewise am honored to join representative altmire in sponsoring this bill, to rename the post office in ellwood city the sergeant leslie sabo jr. post office building. it's important for the citizens of ellwood city and of pennsylvania and our entire nation to have a permanent public reminder of one of our greatest local heroes. his story's a powerful reminder

of the sacrifices our soldiers make in order to keep our country safe. each day in america we enjoy unprecedented freedom thanks to the distinguished service and tremendous sacrifices of our service men and women and their families. while we can never fully repay the debt we owe to our troops and veterans, we can assure them and their families that we will always remember their extraordinary service. the legislation today before us appropriately honors sergeant sabo's service and sacrifice, and i urge my colleagues to support it. thank you, mr. speaker. and i yield back my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back his time. the gentleman from missouri is recognized. mr. clay: mr. speaker, having no further speakers, let me again urge my colleagues to vote in support of h.r. 5954, and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields his time. the gentleman from arizona is recognized. mr. gosar: mr. speaker, i urge all members to support passage of h.r. 5954, and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the question is will the house

suspend the rules and pass h.r. 5954. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 having responded in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the bill is passed, and without objection the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. the chair lays before the house the following enrolled bill. the clerk: h.r. 6131, an act to extend the undertaking spam, spyware and fraud enforcement with enforcers beyond borders act of 2006, and for other purposes.

the speaker pro tempore: the chair will now entertain requests for one-minute speeches. does anyone seek to be recognized for a one-minute speech? under the speaker's announced policy of january 5, 2011, the gentlewoman from illinois, ms. schakowsky, is recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the minority leader. ms. schakowsky: thank you, mr. speaker. i thank you for yielding me for a very important hour. i want to begin with this beautiful, beautiful baby, and hope that everyone will think about her as every child, as

any child as your child. because what i rise to talk about today is the importance of protecting very important maternal and child health programs and research. some wonderful things that our country does to make sure that children, like her, regardless of their circumstances and where they live and how much money their parents make will be able to grow up healthy and happy and productive in our country. . because investments in internal and child health improve the well-being and quality of life for women and children and families all over the country while actually reducing government costs. so as we deal with all of the issues of the debt and deficit,

i want to make sure that everybody's keeping her and children like her and her mother and her father and her family in mind and making cuts that really make sense and avoiding cuts that absolutely make no sense, that don't save money, and certainly don't make our country any better. the investments that we make help children remain healthy, achieve success in school, and become productive members of society. so while we all agree we want to tackle our fiscal challenges, we want to make sure that we take the kind of balanced and sensible approach that reduces our deficit, puts our fiscal house in order, but protects the health of women and children and families. so we should all agree, both sides of the aisle, that while we want to increase revenue to

tackle our budget deficits, and ask those who can afford to pay wealthier individuals, and profitable corporations to pay their fair share, so that we don't ask children and families to bear the burden. this little girl certainly had nothing to do with creating the deficit, and many families that they live in have nothing to do with creating the deficit and asking them to pay more doesn't make any sense. we need to find savings in bloated -- often in the bloated defense budget, waste, fraud, and abuse throughout many different systems, obviously we want to get rid of unnecessary and duplicative programs that we don't need. and we should go very carefully

through our budget, but we don't want to do it at the expense of small children. of children. when we talk about sequestration, these are automatic budget cuts that will go through if we don't resolve the fiscal problems that we have right now. and these are, i would argue, inefficient across the board cuts that will be made, and even some programs for -- even though some programs for vulnerable americans are protected, others would be severely cut and we should not allow this. american families shouldn't be paying for a budget deficit largely caused by things like two unpaid for wars and two unpaid for tax cuts that disproportionately benefited the wealthy. and wall street gone wild that led to the worst recession since

the great depression. our budget should not be balanced on the backs of vulnerable americans, including women and children. and funding programs that assist vulnerable women and children have already experienced serious cuts in recent years and we shouldn't be asking more from these safety net programs. we also want to ensure that we don't replace sequestration, these automatic cuts that will go into place, with something even worse. some alternatives are being considered that would actually do even more harm than sequestration to women and children. and although medicaid beneficiaries are protected under sequestration, some proposals would make cuts and/or change medicaid into a block grant. that means giving just a sum of money to the states, pretty much

to do what they want with, and not necessarily covering the children and poor people, poor families that need medicaid support. in the united states of america, medicaid covers more than 40% of all births and covers one in three children. think about that. 40% of all births and one in three children are in families that qualify for medicaid support. that means that they are low income enough to be able to qualify for medicaid. and we certainly don't want to do something that would make that unavailable so we have the birth of healthy children. sequestration would devastate our public health system, impeding our ability to bend the health care cost curve, to prevent illness, to cure diseases, to ensure access to

quality health services, and to ensure the healthy development of our children. sequestration will eliminate nearly $1 billion in federal funding for programs and research designed to promote and protect the health of women and children. these cuts will hinder our ability to extend quality health care services to women and to families. i want to talk about a very important and often under attack program that we call -- we call title 10. and that is family planning services. family planning clinics and the title -- and also i want to talk about the title 5 maternal and child health services block grants. two programs that reduce barriers for low-income women and children to access critical health care services and support. if we go to these automatic

cuts, again you called sequestration, we'll be cutting $24 million in funding to title 10 clinics. is that $24 million or billion. $24 million to title 10 clinics. decreasing federal funding for the only dedicated family planning program to its lowest point in a decade. title 10 clinics are critical and vital component of our health care safety net, providing critical access to breast and cervical cancer screening programs, prevention and treatment services for sexually transmitted diseases, and reducing the rate of unintended pregnancies and reducing the rate of abortions. access to family planning means that there will be less abortions in the united states. for many women, title 10 clinics

provide the only health care services that they ever receive in their life. without access, some women will have a harder time obtaining preventive care and treatment services. i'm talking about clinics that provide up to five million women across the country, planned parenthood clinics, that we need to fund for not just -- people would like to think about planned parenthood as being the place where women can get abortions. that's a tiny part of their services. about 3%. mostly they provide primary health care, including access to contraception. and that's a very, very important service that we want to make sure that we don't cut. the breast and cervical cancer screening program has been particularly important to providing access for women to

early detection and screening services. in the illinois, my state, i'm from the chicago area, title 10 clinics have cut 1,400 cases of cervical cancer, 713 cases of breast cancer over a five-year period through the program. so sequestration cuts mean that 550 fewer illinois women will be screened for cancer through this program, potentially costing women's lives. because their cancer will be found too late without access to these lifesaving services. i have been joined by one of the chief advocates for women in the united states of america, who has been such an incredible and consistent advocate, and i am so proud and grateful that carolyn maloney, representative from new york, has joined us. i'd like to yield to you, carolyn.

mrs. maloney: i'd like to congratulate my good friend and colleague, jan schakowsky, for her incredible leadership in this body and for organizing this special order that focuses on the impact of sequestration on women, children, and families. it's very important. just yesterday, jan, there was a report that came out from the national economic council and council of economic advisors. it said that if we can -- if we go over this fiscal cliff, if we do sequestration, that it would cut consumer spending by $200 billion. so by having a consensus on the budget and a financial plan that is fair and balanced going forward, it could be $200 billion in stimulus. and on top of that stimulus, there would be business and market stimulus by just having

some certainty in where we are going. so having an agreement that is fair and balanced is critical for the overall economy, but the impact on women and children and some of our most vulnerable would be devastating, and that's why your particular focus today in special order is so important. the united states currently ranks about 50th in the world in infant mortality. and morocco, 1.8 infants under one year of age, they die for every 1,000 live births each year. in japan the number is 2.2. in the united states, to our shame, the number is six. from new zealand to all other advanced countries around the world, they do much better than the united states in this most fundamental measure of health and well-being. and the people who are most

affected by this failure are not those who have been irresponsible, they are not slackers, they are not lazy, they are babies. they are babies. mostly babies who have been born into poverty. this is a metric that we should feel morally bound to improve by leaps and bounds. but instead we are about to make it worse for these babies. if we don't act, and if we don't act swiftly to prevent sequestration. if this congress does not act to prevent this country from plunging over the fiscal scliff under the -- cliff under the terms of the sequestration provision, the women, infant, and children program will experience a savage cut of 8.2%, a reduction of over half a billion dollars. the program known as w.i.c., for short, provides nutrition and breast-feeding education, healthy food, and improved

health care to millions of low-income families and mothers and children. nearly 735,000 participants will be cut from the program next year, and these are not families that can just make up the difference by taking shorter vacations or ripping out a little credit card, these are low-income families and they would be permanently hurt. in my home district of new york, these cuts would seriously threaten the ability to deliver critical services to mothers and babies. service that is they need. it's disproportionately affecting low-income families. sequestration would have a devastate -- would devastate the title 5 maternal and childcare services block grant program. this block grant currently serves over seven million individuals in new york by supporting initiatives that promote health, reduce economic disparate, and combat infant

mortality. under the cruel consequences of sequestration, more than five million fewer families would be served. cuts under sequestration would mean that in new york alone over 1,000 fewer women would be screened for cancer. 11,000 fewer children would be vaccinated. and 1.1 million fewer women and children would be receiving health care. in new york right now, about 14,000 cases of breast cancer and over 914 cases of cervical cancer are diagnosed each and every year. sequestration would cut more than 285,000 from the breast and cervical cancer screening program. in this fragile economy, states simply cannot absorb these cuts without cutting vital services. new york, like every other state in this country, has their own extreme problems and we are running our state now at a

deficit. we have to make that up in a year. we can't carry deficits in our state constitution. so you can't tell a baby to just go out and get a job. let's work together to protect these critical programs for women and children. it's time to change direction. it's time to acknowledge that elections matter, and it's time to listen to the american people. . this bus is headed over a cliff at great speed, and it's time for the people in the majority, the people in the driver's seat here in the house to take a turn and to change it. what would happen if we went into sequestration and if the middle class tax cuts expired, that would be an income of over -- an increase -- a tax of $2,000 on average against every middle-class family in america. failing to take action would

slow the growth of our own real g.d.p. by 1.4 percentage points in 2013. and this continued gridlock would throw the united states back into a recession and cause the jobless rate to go up. congress is going to be stuffing, i would say, a big ugly lump of coal into the stockings of the american workers if we don't save this country from sequestration. and we know that those that would be hurt are those that are the most vulnerable. it was our great president, john f. kennedy, who said when you balance budgets, don't balance it on the backs of the poor. and this sequestration, what it does to the programs that serve the neediest and the most vulnerable, the children, the mothers, the retired women, this is going to hurt them the most. and i would say nobody in their right mind would vote to do

that. the american people made their wishes clear in this last election, they supported president obama, and they want this congress to get going and to get the job done. but at the rate we're going, we are all going no place fast except over a cliff, and as you pointed out, the impact of going over this cliff will be devastating to our overall economy but particularly for those that are the most vulnerable -- our children and our mothers and our elderly women. so i want to congratulate my colleague and partner in so many efforts for women, children and families and for working americans and really for getting a compromise, for getting a solution that will keep us from going over this fiscal cliff. i yield back to my distinguished colleague. ms. schakowsky: i want to underscore i think a pretty

shocking statistic. you mentioned that the united states of america is 50th in infant mortality. was that the -- mrs. maloney: yes. ms. schakowsky: and here we're so wealthy and yet we're 50th in the world in infant mortality. so one being the best, of course, and you mentioned that countries that we wouldn't necessarily expect would be better than the united states -- morocco, for example, and i'm sure there's a bunch of others, and yet the united states of america being 50th -- now, many people don't live in communities where they see that, but that means there's got to be neighborhoods, communities in our country where the infant mortality rate is probably very much like those in underdeveloped countries where, you know, they rely on programs like the w.i.c. w.i.c. -- like the women, infant and children

program to make sure that women don't -- children don't have underweight births. the w.i.c. program, it sounds like what you're saying is we would be taking food out of the mouths of little children, literally. mrs. maloney: literally. i would say it's absolutely scandalous, be a slut scandalous. we have to work together, prevent this from happening. always, it's those parts of our society that can't afford a lobbyist, that don't have the money. a baby can't get a job and they can't hire a lobbyist. so those programs that help poor children are going to be incredibly vulnerable during the sequestration. no one in their right mind would let this happen. yet, the parties seem so far apart. we don't seem to be getting the consensus that we need to make

this happen. it's absolutely critical, and getting that consensus and not falling over that cliff is literally going to save lives, millions of lives. ms. schakowsky: that's why, because we all get into the numbers game. you know, we talk about a billion here and a billion there, etc., and that's why i wanted to put up a picture of beautiful elliday michaud, who happens to be the daughter of megan michaud, who is my legislative director. so people can look at a face. this is the kind of face, if not elliday's face that we're talking about. here's the mom and the baby too. these are the kinds of pieces that we want people to keep in their mind. it's easy to say we'll cut money from the w.i.c. program,

women, infant and children program, and then you realize what that would mean to perhaps this mother and this baby and so many across the country. mrs. maloney: i would say so. in providing the resources for a healthy birth and providing the resources for w.i.c., which provides food, literally, to children, to babies and their mothers, this is a fundamental measure of healthy well-being around the country, the birth of children, the health of their mothers. yet, we are doing so poorly in it. we are 50th in the world in infant mortality. that is not a statistic. that is a scandal. and taking money away from the support of these young babies, these are not irresponsible people that aren't carrying their weight. these are not people that are slackers like some of my colleagues on the other side of the aisle talk about some people. they're not lazy.

they just happen to be born poor. and the richest country in the world, we have to be there, as john f. kennedy said, we can't balance the budget on the backs of the poor. it's wrong. ms. schakowsky: i want to thank you so much. mrs. maloney: thank you. ms. schakowsky: for your contribution and for the continuing contributions for women and children. yes, it's true that title 5, the block grant also does things like combat preteen -- preterm birth, teen pregnancies, preventing chronic conditions, reducing disparities that are often present in our society. let's be clear, not everybody has access to quality affordable health services, and we want to improve that for more than 40 million women, infants and children with special health care needs. my state uses title 5 funding

to reduce infant mortality, as i say, to prevent teen pregnancy, to ensure newborn screenings. we're able to test children early on for things that can become chronic conditions and make sure we take care of them early and to coordinate care for children with physical disabilities. and the sequestration cuts will reduce critical funding to these efforts by over $1.65 million in illinois alone, and with those cuts 306,000 fewer illinois women, infants and children can be served. another really important area that i think a lot of people don't focus on is training of doctors. one of the things that sequestration -- these automatic budget cuts -- will do is to reduce our ability to train peed at rick physicians to -- pediatric physicians to

be part of the education. it trains more than 40% of general pediatricians and 43% of pediatric subspecialists. sequestration, automatic cuts, would take $21 million from this program, forcing the reduction of residency slots, training of doctors at children's hospitals across the country. we want to have these quality doctors that are able to make sure they can care for our children. i want to go back to something that representative maloney raised, and that's the w.i.c. program, women, infants and children and immunizations. experts agree we must combat our deficits by bringing down the total cost of health care. that's true. the sequestration could result in just the opposite. the sequestration cuts to

programs such as the -- what can he call the food stamp program, the -- what we call the food stamp program, the snap program, or the supplemental nutrition program for women, infants and children, and the 13 immunization programs that will have their funding cut, if we're to reduce our national health care he expenditures, we have to make sure -- health care expundtures, we have to make sure we fund those programs. they have a track record of saving money on future medical expenses. imagine you're sending your children to school and they're sitting next to a child who simply can't afford to get the kind of immunizations they need because those funds have been cut. none of us want that. i certainly don't want that for my grandchildren. the supplemental nutrition program for women, infant and

children, the w.i.c. program, improves the health by providing nutritious food and nutrition and breast-feeding education to women and young children and the w.i.c. program has resulted in healthier pregnancies, healthier birth outcomes and the better growth for women and children. for every dollar we spend on women in the w.i.c. program, as much as $4.21 is saved in medicaid expenditures because w.i.c. reduces the risk for preterm birth by 25% and low birth weight babies by 44%. these are successful programs. in spite of the proven success and cost savings from the w.i.c. program, sequestration would cut $529 million from the w.i.c. program, which would allow the w.i.c. program to serve approximately 735,000 fewer women and young children

who are nutrition risk, including 24,200 from my home state. i see that i have been joined by a fearless and tireless advocate for women and children, particularly low-income women and children. this is my next door neighbor and great friend and great congresswoman from the great state of wisconsin, gwen moore. ms. moore: well, thank you so much, my good friend from illinois, jan schakowsky. you have always, even before your tenure as a member of congress, been an advocate for good, healthy, nutritious foods. you know, it really occurs to me that kids can't wait. it's not as if we malnourish them now that somehow when the economy picks up we can supply

them with calcium and vitamin a and vitamin c, protein and iron they need retrospectively and say, let's just pick up where we left off. here is this pregnant woman, if she can just manage to get this child in the world, by the time they are 3-or 4, we'll back up and provide them with that nourishment. and i can tell them that, jan, you have long time been a shero in this and so has my good friend, rosa delauro from connecticut, who will be joining us very soon as well. we got to take a balanced approach to this deficit reduction. there's just no question that these programs would serve women, infants, children will lose if sequestration takes place as scheduled. we know every year millions of women and children depend on

health, nutrition and other services that are provided through their state and local public health departments because of federal funding. these services not only include nutrition but well child and well mother checkups, basic immunizations, education on healthy eating and nutrition and referrals, when appropriate, to programs like w.i.c., which help ensure a healthy start for mothers and children. let's not fool ourselves. sequestration will cripple these efforts that help women and children. according to one estimate, sequestration will eliminate nearly $1 billion in federal funding for research and programs designed to promote and protect the health of women and children. and many of these programs have already been subject to two straight years of funding cuts

and left flat or near flat funding prior to that. sequester will cut even deeper and for much longer. when we talk about we need to have a balanced approach in terms of raising revenues and cuts, we have already cut $1.7 trillion from these programs. you know, you can cut to the bone and into the bone when you start talking about cutting these programs any more. some make the argument that our nation can no longer afford to invest in programs that support the health and well being of women and children. and i would argue that we cannot afford not to make these investments. we sure hear a lot about family values that quite frankly isn't reflected in the support of funding for programs that aim to provide the most basic of necessities for women and

children in need. i want to talk about one of these programs. the special supplemental nutrition program for women, infants and children, w.i.c. w.i.c. serves over nine million mothers and young children every month, including a majority of infants throughout our nation and about one in four pregnant women. the program focuses on how low income pregnant, breastfeeding, and postpartum women, infant, and children udge age 5, who are at nutritional risk, we're talking about women and youngsters who are low income and at risk for some very, very troubling health and developmental outcomes vnd very expensive for our nation outcomes down the road as their health dee tieror ates because we did not do basic preventive things like giving them a

decent meal. research has consistently shown that participation in w.i.c. improves nutrition, resulting in overall healthier pregnancies, healthier birth outcomes and better growth and development of young children. yet this hard-fought progress of the lives of at-risk women and children are at risk due to pending budget cuts. administrative costs for these programs is just a steal, only about 7.5%, meaning the vast majority of these funds go to healthy food, education, and referrals for women, infants, and children in need. so when we talk about the cuts that are call -- that are called for under sequestration, we're not talking about trimming overhead and waste, we're talking about taking away food, food, people, and vital services from vulnerable populations. we're talking about denying an

infant access to good, healthy breast milk and the food package that they need to help develop normally. w.i.c. is a short-term intervention that makes a lifelong difference. on average a woman participates for 13 months -- months but science tells us that those 13 months makes a heck of a difference to mother and children for over a lifetime. if we can't agree as a nation that ensuring -- insuring -- ensuring pregnant women, infants and children are adequately nourished is a must, then what can we agree on. we will not balance the budget by cutting w.i.c. and other federal programs like the maternal and child block grants, healthy start for hiv-aids block grant. w.i.c. represents less than 50% of the budget. healthy funding for women and children did not put our nation

in the fiscal mess but it is these proven, cost effective innovations that help us all. which are poised to bear the brunt of these cuts. but allowing sequestration to occur, we must put -- we put lives in jeopardy in spite of the considerable evidence that these programs are making a difference and saving costs to the taxpayers. down the line. thank you so much for this time. january, thank you for joining this special order. i think that we're talking about, when we talk about food, we're talking about the very basic need and we -- if we're talking about cutting food from infants, we're talking about not making a hard choice, we're talking about making a cruel choice.

>> thank you for the work -- ms. schakowsky: thank you not only for your words today but for the work you do on behalf of women and children. i want to call on one of the leaders when it comes to making sure our children in particular and low income people have adequate nutrition in a country that is the richest in the world, an advocate for women and children from the state of connecticut, rosa delauro. ms. delauro: thank you very, very much. there are not enough words to express our thanks collectively to you, congresswoman schakowsky, for calling this special order today. coming to the floor, i saw our colleague, carolyn maloney and our colleague gwen moore just completed her remarks and we know the strength of her passion and i know that waiting to speak today is congresswoman lois capps. the issues that we talk about today are not about -- just

about women. it's about our families. and what's happening in the lives of our families. there has been such an incredible road for families today given the nature of the recession and how deep that recession was and how basically people are trying to hang on and to try to make their way to take care of themselves and their families. it's about maternal and child health, it's about their well being. and you know, i think that it is appropriate to talk about this now. we did just come through an election. and i think one of the things we saw in this election that the issues that face women and children and their families were front and center. and women collectively addressed these issues and began to perk up their ears and to look to see, how am i going to take care of my family? who is watching out for me and my family?

and i'm -- i know as you are and my colleagues on this side of the aisle, we are very grateful for the decisions that they made and now we have to make good on the promises that we made to families and they are promises. we have a moral responsibility to address these issues of nutrition and health in this nation. this is not something, when people want to say that there isn't any money to do these efforts let's take a look at other areas where there is money and the enormous subsidies we pay out to various interests and where we provide our tax code which we can use for good purposes but oftentimes may be used for a purpose that's contrary to the well being of this nation. let's look to those places first before we start to look at cuts that affect the people in that photograph, they're

real. they're not statistics. and this institution has that moral responsibility and that obligation to do well by them. and my colleague, gwen moore, she talked about the w.i.c. program, the supplemental nutrition program for women, infants and children. short-term programs, science based. it's a lifetime of good nutrition. health behave grors at-risk women and children. and what we have here is the investment in this program, what does it do. it doesn't just sink to the bottom of the ocean? it means healthier pregnancies, healthier birth outcomes, growth and the development of young children. over half hoe the babies born in the united states every year, and nine million mothers every month, participate in this program all across the united states. my colleague talked exclusively

about the w.i.c. program. let me then, i was going to do that but let me take a different tack. let me talk about the bounty in this nation that you spoke about, my colleague. and this is a land of plenty. we produce more food than any other nation in the world. and i'll tell you about my congressional district. the greater new haven, connecticut, district. one out of seven people in my district go to bed hungry. they don't know where their next meal is coming from. connecticut statistically is the richest state in the nation. it is because we have something called fairfield county. and the gold coast where there's a lot of affluence. but we also have cities like

new haven and hartford and bridgeport and others who have families who are at risk. what's happened with the issue of -- when people talk about food and security. you know what it means. i know what it means. congresswoman capps knows what it means. it means people are hungry. and they don't know where their next meal is coming from. and we're now looking at food pantries that are out of food. there are all kinds of drives to say fill up these shelves so people can come, people who never thought they'd have to use this kind of service are in fact looking at the need to put food on their table. and yet, we look at a set of sirblings here in the programs that we have jurisdiction over, where we would see $134 billion

in cuts. to the food stamp program. to supplemental nutrition assistance program network snap program. what that means is when you have that massive a cut there, millions, millions of people are going to be jettisonned from the ability to feed their families and feed themselves and that mother and child in that photograph are going to be without access to food. it is unconscionable and then i will just say one more point. the emergency food assistance program which is a program for families who are not eligible for food stamps. their funding is depend upon what happens in the food stamp program. so the young women in branford, connecticut, who came to an event with me and a blue collar town a young woman had a job as a human resources

administrator, helped invest pension funds, three sons, 18, 14, and 10. she got up and said, my -- i am not eligible for food stamps so i come to the food bank to get emergency food assistance. she and her family, three growing boys, eat one meal a day. in the united states of america. a land of plenty. i say, she had tears in her eyes. she wants a job. she wants to go to work. she hasn't been able to find one. connecticut has 9% unemployment. so her family is eating one meal a day. it's outrageous. it's unconscionable. we have the ability in this institution to change that. so that our children don't go to bed hungry at night. that is not who we are, that's not where our values are.

it is that moral responsibility. and if we move forward with what they're talking about in these deep cuts, the sequestration, all it is is letting people know about the deep cuts, there will be even more cuts to food programs, nutrition programs, which will rob people of their lives and their ability to succeed and it's particularly important for our children, our babies, our toddlers, and our children. let's have the courage, not to make this happen and to pull back from these unconscionable cuts to our food and nutrition program. thank you. thank you for doing this. god bless you. ms. schakowsky: thank you for your passion which is obvious every day for making sure we make the smart investments in our children and women and health care in this country. thank you, rosa delauro. and now it is my pleasure to bring up one of the handful of

nurses, trained nurses, that are in this house of representatives, and lois capps from california has been a leader on health care and all those programs that are really going to help our families to live the kinds of lives that all of us want to live in the united states. so thank you for joining us. lois capps of california. mrs. capps: thank you. i rise to voice my very strong support of our nation's maternal and child health programs. and i want to thank my colleague from illinois, jan schakowsky, for getting the idea that we come together around this topic today. because of the implications it has for the beautiful young woman and her child that you're picturing next to you that is a reminder to all of us that these are not numbers when we're talking about sequestration. they really have impacts in

people's very lives. so it's an honor for me to follow my -- our colleague, rosa delauro, from connecticut, and also have as part of your discussion, gwen moore an eloquent spokesperson from milwaukee, wisconsin. this is very diverse in materials of region of the country that are going to be impacted should we ever cross this threshold. but most of the public discussion we've had so far on whatever this fiscal cliff, however it's described, that we face, the discussion has been about taxes, about who is going to pay what in taxes. but what has been so underreported and overlooked, which is why i'm so grateful to you for calling this out today for us, is the impact that sequestration cuts would have on our economy, but especially on that vital element of our economy which is our most vulnerable in our society, our

children. they're our future. they are not just statistics, they are real people, little people who cannot wait for services because their bodies will change, their minds will be stunted, they will lose out if we -- if we withhold support for them. and i speak from my many years of being a nurse, as you described, and being a nurse in our public sector in our public schools and a public health nurse and i've seen firsthand what happens when we cut services to our children. we need to be investing in our children because they are our economic engine for tomorrow, and we cannot afford to leave one of them behind. we therefore cannot afford to slash the programs, the very programs that will give them the kind of healthy start in life. you invest a dollar upfront in a child and you recoup that dollar so many times over their

lifetime, and you prevent a lot of other kinds of dollars from being spent in ways that we don't want to. but sequestration would be devastating for our children. i focused on my state of california in terms of looking what this would be like. these cuts, should sequestration come to pass, would be so devastating to the health and well-being of hundreds and thousands of women and children in the state i come from. for example, in the program we've all been talking about, because it's so central to what families need, food security, the women, infant, children's program, for those that don't have enough to give their children to give them that healthy start, over 120,000 women and children will be cut from this essential program just in california if sequestration came to be. this provides nutrition

assistance, vital link to healthy thriving brain and body which are for families who might not have access to healthy foods. and for maternal and child health service block grants, nearly 400,000 fewer women and children will be received by these block grants. so the ripple effect down that -- down our state and throughout our communities would be so tremendous because these services provide a wide range of health care to -- and they allow the expansion of certain of quality of health care programs, for example, children with disabilities. in california we would be facing, should sequestration happen, 2,000 fewer women having access to breast and cervical cancer screenings, the preventive services that cut -- keep cancer full-blown from occurring in these women's

lives. so costly to them personally, to their families but also to taxpayers. and nearly $1 million -- and this is what i want to close by focusing on -- because we don't stop and think when we would cut $1 million from the children's hospital graduate medical education program, in sequestration, $1 million will be cut for these training programs in california which would make -- that program makes sure that we have enough resources necessary to train the next generation of pediatric physicians, people who are there on the front lines with families to pull them through what life -- what they face in life. you know, many of us met, and i met this real-life impact of this program when a remarkable young man came to capitol hill from california last year. max paige. now you may not remember his name, but you probably remember, if you watched the super bowl in 2011, little darth vader in the ad, the

popular volkswagon super bowl ad. he's a real child. only 7 years old. i came to meet him on capitol hill last year. he was born with a congenital heart defect, not uncommon, but it has required numerous surgeries during the seven years of his short life. and he's being treated by children's hospital in los angeles, which my colleagues from california know very well as an outstanding medical facility, serving a wide region in the southwest. and last year when max came to washington with his parents and little brother, he came to tell members of congress his own story and how important it is that we continue to invest in preparing new doctors to care for our children. you know, it's every parent's worst fear what will happen if their child becomes sick. not just a runny nose or a sore throat, but seriously ill with

perhaps a life-threatening or a chronic condition that needs life-long treating. we owe it to every parent in america to do what we can to make sure that every child has access to the best health care available if they need it. we don't want them to be concerned that there's not going to be that trained pediatrician, that hospital to send their sick child to should that happen and it's because we couldn't get our act together and avoid this sequestration. so i'm so pleased that you took the time to organize this hour of sharing with the american people the impact of sequestration, that it would have such a profound affect on our lives when we think about ensuring that every child in america gets a healthy start to life. we take it for granted that every small child needs and deserves this right in this country that we are proud to live in, the united states of

america. so we need to come together now on behalf of our nation's children and their mothers and their families to stop the sequestration cuts, to ensure we have a balanced approach to reducing our debt and continue to support our communities and the front line services that they provide to our families, because our smallest, our most vulnerable and their families, they're depending on us now in this hour. so, again, i thank you for bringing us together, my colleague from illinois, and for focusing us on the real-life impact that what we're facing here with the -- ms. schakowsky: let me also just underscore the point you made about training pediatricians and pediatric specialists. that would affect across the board everyone who seeks -- this is not just for vulnerable communities or individuals but all of us with small children.

i want to make sure that the doctors are there when our kids may need them. so this is very important. i'm glad you brought that up. thank you. mrs. capps: thank you for this opportunity. ms. schakowsky: thank you. i wanted to just mention another cost-effective reason that we should avoid cuts. for example, we have immunization programs that increase -- that decrease our future health care costs. let me just give you the actual dollar numbers. every dollar we spend on childhood vaccine series through this program saves our health care system $16.50 in future medical costs. by anybody's estimation, that's a really good return on investment. $16.50 back for every $1 we spend on childhood vaccines. another aspect of sequestration

cuts that would really hurt everyone are the cuts through research into the health challenges facing our country. the proposed cuts to the national institutes of health of almost $2.5 billion will cause irreparable harm to our research infrastructure and our ability to treat and cure diseases. eliminating funding for almost 2,400 research projects will decrease our ability to identify new methods to prevent and combat health challenges, such as cancer and diabetes and impede our ability to be the leader in research, hinder our ability to train and develop the future leaders of our biomedical sciences work force. research into costly diseases affecting mothers and babies will be especially harmed by these cuts. the national institute for child health and human development, which is responsible for conducting and

funding research into these diseases, has the lowest percentage of grant applications funded of all the n.i.h. institutes. the $106 million cut to the national institute for child health and human development will likely worsen this trend and dampen our hopes of finding innovative treatments and cures for conditions that are affecting mothers and babies. there are just some -- these are just some of the examples that devastating effect of sequestration to child research. we can't afford these cuts. i want to end this hour by saying all of us want to make sure that we do put our fiscal house in order, but the real question is at what cost are we going to do it to certain people. who is actually going to pay? i think we have an interest to

make sure we keep our children, our mothers and our families healthy, well-fed and make sure that we raise productive children in this country and i yield back and thank you. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back. under the speaker's announced policy of january 5, 2011, the gentleman from california, mr. calvert, is recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the majority leader. mr. calvert: thank you, mr. speaker. today we honor seven members of congress from california who have honorably served in the united states house of representatives. combined experience, knowledge and expertise of my departing colleagues will be sorely missed. i've been joined by some of our california members who will be coming in and out if they wish to speak and we'll be happy to yield to them. but first we have a good friend from north dakota who's also departing, u.s. representative rick berg, and i will yield time to him. representative berg.

mr. berg: i thank the gentleman from california and thank you, mr. speaker. you know, it's been a distinct honor for me to represent the people of north dakota in this congress, the 112th congress. i ran for congress because i believed that we needed to continue to have an economic environment, an economic climate that has stability and encourages growth and encourages jobs. i'm sure we can all agree that there is more work that needs to be done. but i'm hopeful in the days, the weeks, the months and the year ahead that we can finally come together, not as democrats and not as republicans, but as americans who are concerned about the future and concerned about that next generation. in doing so, i know that we'll tackle the challenges that our country faces. you know, i'm always proud to tell the people i meet that i represent north dakota. down here in washington, we are

the envy of the nation. we have the lowest unemployment in the country, a budget surplus. we're seeing unprecedented economic growth and one of the brightest futures ahead. and to the great people of the state of north dakota, i want to express my deepest gratitude for giving me the opportunity to be north dakota's voice, the voice here in the u.s. house of representatives for the last two years. i'd also like to thank my staff for their hard work. i've put them through some long hours serving the people of north dakota, and i know the people of north dakota appreciate the hard work and the dedication that they brought forward. you know, my faith in the democratic process is unwavering and i truly believe that america's brightest days are ahead. serving the people of north dakota in congress was an adventure and an experience of a lifetime. it's something i'll always look

back at with pride and appreciation. personally, i'm not sure what lies ahead, but i'll say this, it will be great spending a lot more time in the great state of north dakota. thank you. may god bless, and with that i'll yield back. mr. calvert: thank you. thank you for your service. mr. speaker, we have a number of people coming shortly, but first i'd like to say some words about the dean of our california delegation, jerry lewis. jerry was first elected in 1978 to the united states house of representatives. we're losing a great man with a retirement -- a good friend of all of us and a mentor to me, jerry lewis. from his early days in congress, jerry lewis has worked tirelessly for the good of the nation and for the well-being of his constituents. whether it was securing water

supplies for southern california, rebuilding our defense programs, supporting the nasa unmanned aerial vehicle, eliminating wasteful spending or improving the quality of life, jerry lewis has been the definition of a leader and a patriot. his great depth of knowledge will be sorely missed by the entire house and especially the house appropriations committee where he served as chairman and ranking member. i know all of us are grateful for jerry for years of service to our country and we'll miss his vision, his leadership and his sense of humor. and certainly says his intellect. i congratulate jerry on his retirement. while he will be missed here, he has much to look forward to as he enjoys retired life with his wife, his children, and his grandchildren. next i'd like to take a moment and say a few words about our

california former attorney general, congressman dan lungren. congressman lungren was first elected to congress in 1978, where his legal background was instrumental in his leadership on judiciary, criminal juiceties and immigration issues. he was called back to state service in 1989 and successfully ran for attorney general where he served from 1991 to 1999. as attorney general, congressman lungren helped author and later defended in court california's landmark three strikes and you're out law. during his tenure and due to his tough on crime policies. crime plunged 30% to historic lows in california. after a few years in the private sector -- sector and the aftermath of september 11, 2001, congressman lungren decided to return to congress and was re-elected in 2004. since his return, congressman

lungren has used his time and talents as a member of the judiciary and homeland security committee. throughout his career, congressman lungren has supported, and been supported by his wonderful wife bobbie and their family. thank you, congressman lunfwren for your contributions to both california and our -- your contributions to both california and our country will be long remembered. i know you're very proud of your alma mater, notre dame, as they head toward another national championship. now i'd like to return to california again with david dreier, who is our current chairman of our california republican delegation. david was elected as part of the reagan revolution in 1980. he has remained true to the principles of free markets, free trade, limited government, strong national defense, and personal freedom during his 31 years of service. congressman dreier holds the

distinction of being the youngest chairman of the house rules committee and the first from california. as chairman of the rules committee, congressman dreier has been instrumental in restoring regular order to the house, ensuring members' voices are heard on legislation and supporting the ideals of civil debate in the house. congressman dreier has also been a leader in reforming congress to increase transparency, demand accountability, ensure the dignity of the united states house of representatives. in 2001, mr. dreier was unanimously selected by the california -- by his california colleagues to chair the state's republican delegation where he leads california's house republicans on critical statewide issues. congressman dreier's leadership, especially as chairman of the house rules committee, will be sorely missed. next is someone i've worked with also for many years, we

had worked together to address california water supply issues and reform the endangered species act. congressman wally herger. wally has been a tremendous asset to his constituents and certainly to this body. during his time in congress, congressman herger has been a vow tall and -- vocal and active supporter of efforts to enhance and improve flood control and water storage infrastructure to meet the public health and safety needs of growing communities in northern california. he's also been a strong supporter of improved forest management to protect communities from catastrophic wildfire and provide local economic development opportunities. accordingly, he's been champion of several piece of common sense forest health legislation, including the herger-feinstein-quincy library group of 1998 and the secure rules schools and community self-determination act of 2000. congressmanning her you are was instrumental in the re-authorization expansion of

the 1996 welfare reform law, the re-authorization measure enacted in 2006, to strengthen the 1996 law to help even more parents on welfare go to work and further strengthen their families. in the 112th congress, congressman herger was selected chairman of the house ways and means subcommittee on health and was the leader in fighting government takeover of health care. in addition to many accomplishments in congress, congressman herger and his wife pamela are proud parents and grandparents of nine children and 12 grandchildren. congressman herger's spirit, tenacity, intelligence, and leadership have been the hallmark of a distinguished career and we certainly salute him as he retires. i'm hape by to yield to mr. herger whatever time he may consume. mr. herger: i thank my good

friend for california -- from california for those kinds remarks, mr. calvert, and for your leadership over the years. i was deeply honored and humbled when the good poem of northern california elected me 26 years ago to be their representative. i came to washington as president ronald reagan, one of my personal heroes, was wrapping up the final years of his second term. that was more than a quarter century ago and yet the years have moved by at a breathtaking pace. time does not permit to even begin to recount the memories. there have been incredible highs and incredible lows but i'll always treasure the time i was allowed to serve in this amazing institution that was forged by the wisdom of our founding fathers. i have mixed feelings today.

i would deeply miss the company of dedicated colleagues who have become my good friends. i value and treasure the members of my staff who have literally become a second family and i know i'll feel a sense of loss when we say good-bye. i know that when i pick up the morning newspaper next january and read about the enormously important issues that are being put to a vote, a part of me will wish i could still be here to fight the battle. yet i look forward to the next phase of my life. i want to see more of those 12 grandchildren. i get to have more time with my dear wife, pam, the most supportive spouse any man could hope and pray for. and i know that when i step down, a host of deeply committed patriotic colleagues will do everything in their

power to advance the cause of liberty. i'm greatly encouraged by the dedication and passion of the large class of republican lebs -- members swept into office in the historic election of 2010. i'm also very gratified that northern california will be represented next year by a republican freshman who knows what it is like to drive a tractor and get mud on his boots. i have confidence in this new generation of leaders. i cannot lead this congress -- leave this congress without saying a few words about the wonderful people of northern california. in my rural district, you will find farmers with rough hands and sunburned faces. you will find top timber fallers and -- tough timber fallers and millworkers. the people of northern california have the

old-fashioned and refreshing patriotism that leads them to post this kind of sign at the county line, quote, where we honor veterans, close quote. in my two decades of service, the thing that has always struck me the most about my constituents is that what they really want most from the federal government is simply to be left alone. they do not want a new program. they want to run their small businesses, their farms, and their mills, without being wrapped up in 15 yards of red tape. they want to compete, they want to prosper. they understand they the premise of this country -- they understand the premise of this country, personal libererity -- liberty. the freedom to pursue a dream. the concept of risk and reward. that's not too much to ask. for their sakes and for the sake of all americans, i ask my

colleagues to get back to the roots of our nation, to freshly embrace our heritage, to trust the ingenuity of the american people to thrive and prosper if we will simply get out of their way. i have deeply appreciated the opportunity to serve with you and i extend my deepest thanks to the constituents of northern california for allowing me the extraordinary privilege of fighting for them in the united states house of representatives. thank you and i yield back my time. the speaker pro tempore: i thank the gentleman and i want you to know how much of a privilege and honor it has been for me to serve with you for the last 20 years. mr. herger: i thank my good friend. mr. calvert: thank you. next up, one of our senior members from the state of california and a great notre

dame fan, alumni of notre dame, dan lungren, for whatever time he may consume. mr. lungren: i thank my friend for yielding. and i must say that i very much appreciate the time he's take ton recognize those of us who are leaving this institution who hail if the state of california. 24 years ago, in 1988, i stood on this floor during this month to say fwoob to the house for the first time. i was privileged to be elected in 1978, just before ronald reagan came to washington, d.c. i was proud to be one of the first seven members of congress to endorse him for president in 1979 and to travel with him at that time. i recall that whenever he was

campaigning east of the mississippi, he asked those of us in congress who supported him to attend his political press conferences with him. we would basically stand behind him and use ourselves as a backdrop to show that ronald reagan had some connection with washington, d.c. it was a proud moment for me. it was an even greater honor to serve in the house of representatives while he was president of the united states. he showed that you can change the world through the power of your ideas. it was wonderful to be a foot soldier in the army of ronald reagan as we trance formed this house, as we transformed this congress, as we transformed this nation as we allowed liberty to ring much louder than it had before. one of my proudest moments in the house of representatives is

being part of the reception committee that accepted the statue of ronald reagan from the state of california to be one of the statues here in the house of representatives. if you look at the legislation, it permanently places that statue in the rotunda of the capitol of the united states. it will take a positive vote from the congress to remove it. when people look at the statue of ronald reagan, they should see the cracks along the base. those cracks are there because that is a piece of the berlin wall with ronald reagan standing above it. our belief at the time was that this would allow for generations in the future, children in the future, when they are accompanied by their parents to say to the parents, why would they put a statue

here, honoring a president, that's cracked at its base. and it will allow those parents and others to explain to those children the story of the -- story of the defeat of communism and the victory of freedom. so for 10 years, i was able to work here in the house, went home, two years later, ran for attorney general, was lucky enough to be attorney general of california for eight years and then following an unsuccessful attempt to be governor, i thought i was finished with public service. but i happened to be here in washington, d.c. on 9/11. i happened to be one of those, not here in the capitol but in an office building downtown. i was one of those who was evacuated. we stood on the street corner for hours until we were allowed back in the building. and i recall that while it was a terrifying moment, it was a

unifying moment. because people that you didn't know, black and white and hispanic and asian, all coming up to one another and asking who is attacking us? that is a threat but it was unifying in that we felt they were attacking us. didn't matter what our color was, didn't matter what our religious beliefs happened to be. it was that we were all americans. and i was at a law firm at the time, i was going to have an office in washington, d.c. i had the copies of the constitution of the united states and the bill of rights that had been made off the original copies and given to those of us as members of congress on the bicentennial of the constitution and after i went back to the office i got a hammer and some nails and tacked it up to the wall because i was trying to make a statement that no matter who it was that was attacking this nation and us, they weren't going to succeed and they weren't going to destroy this country and they weren't going

to destroy this constitutional democracy. if i had opportunity i would seek public office again to see if i could add something to the fight against terror. so i've been privileged to be a member of the homeland security committee for eight years, been a privilege to be a member of the judiciary committee where we worked on fisa, foreign intelligence surveillance act, and we worked on -- we worked on other acts that were extromely important like the pate the -- extremely important like the patriot act where we ensured that the civil liberties of this country would not be trampled upon but we also ensured that this nation would not be destroyed by those who wish us ill and wish to destroy us. and i've been privileged to serve part of the house administration committee and served before that as the ranking member. attempting to try and make this house function better and attempting to help members become better members in

servicing their constituents. and to try and provide a modicum of security for this house to ensure that this institution is not attacked physically or through the cyberworld or in other ways. and i have to say, when you are lucky enough to be less than 11,000 people to be a member of this house, to be a member of the congress, you realized how lucky you are. you realize what a privilege it is, and you realize that this institution is here before you were and will be here after you leave and if you can put a mark on it that helps it maintain its integrity and allow it to be the symbol of freedom that it has been that you will have achieved something.

one of the things i attempted to do and was successful is maybing sure that the national motto, in god we trust, is not only here over the rostrum but as people come to the new entryway to the congress of the united states, the c.v.c., capitol visitor center, the first things they see is in god we trust illuminated in stone. in a funny way you can say i left a mark on this place. believe it or not we were sued for putting it up there. it will be there as long as this institution remains. so i will just say thank you to those who've elected me. i was privileged to serve from northern california, southern california. i was privileged to represent the entire state. i was privileged to have my chirp on the floor with me as i was sworn in.

and have my grandchildren on the floor with me when i was sworn in my second tour. not many men and women get that opportunity. so i thank the people of my state. i thank my colleagues from all over the country, particularly those from california. we are a band of brothers and sisters. we worked together over the years. we have worked i think with integrity, with honesty and hopefully with a modicum of humidity, understanding how important this place -- humility, understanding how important this place is. and as long as what you consider you do important and yourself not so important, you will succeed. so i thank my friend from california, and i thank my colleagues from california for this opportunity to at least say another goodbye. mr. calvert: well, i thank the gentleman and i certainly wish you well, and i know notre dame will do very well in the coming days and weeks.

mr. lungren: will the gentleman yield? 28 years ago -- 24 years ago i left this house. i went to the l.a. coliseum. i saw notre dame beat s.c. and went on to see them win the national championship. last weekend i saw notre dame beat s.c. -- mr. calvert: let's not get carried away. mr. lungren: i will see notre dame again. i don't know if i will have another 24 years, however. mr. calvert: i thank the gentleman. our friend from illinois -- we are going to go out of order for a minute -- to recognize for five minutes our good friend, mr. dold from illinois, for five minutes. mr. dold: i want to thank my good friend for yielding and certainly want to thank my colleague and mr. lungren, the chairman, for his leadership over the course of these many years. it is indeed one of the highest

honors and privileges of my life to be able to represent the people of illinois' 10th congressional district in this esteemed body. i always remembered who i worked for and what they wanted to see accomplished and the importance of bringing thoughtful independent leadership to the congress. when i first ran i saw far too many people, far too many americans that were struggling, out of work in a tough economy. as a small business owner i certainly understand firsthand the pressures that small business owners, families were facing all over the country. i felt that the government, the federal government was making it harder and harder for me to put the key in the door and open up my business each and every day. and frankly they should be doing quite the opposite. we here should be trying to make it easier for businesses to open up their doors, easier for them to hire that next individual. i've talked at length in this chamber about my main street jobs agenda, with its focus on

pro-growth tax reform, increasing exports and manufacturing, access to capital for small businesses, making investments in infrastructure, utilizing domestic energy resources, the importance of stem education and implementing smarter regulations as opposed to simply more of them. i do believe that this is the best recipe to move our country forward and to get our economy back on track. now, there's certainly much more work to be done in the future, but i do want to recognize two important areas and important steps that we have taken in the 112th congress. this chamber's advanced and i have been proud to support a framework for tax reform that is focused on economic growth and providing much-needed tax relief to the american families. the realization of this tax reform will be essential in helping our economy reach its full potential in the future. i'm also proud of the work we've been able to do to promote domestic manufacturing,

exports and jobs created by them. as the second largest manufacturing congressional district in the nation, we know how important it is to have trade agreements and the ones that we passed with colombia, panama and south korea. and we're already seeing the positive impact these are having for jobs back at home. i'd also like to take this time to highlight a number of more locally focused achievements, specifically noteworthy for illinois' 10th congressional district. for nearly 20 years, we've been working closely with the local coalition of stakeholders and the army corps of engineers, with the usepa and the illinois e.p.a. to clean up waukegan harbor, to delist it as an area of concern, something that is the gateway for lake county to the great lakes. i'm pleased to say that cleanup has begun and we are going to delist that and that did happen under our watch, something a

number of us are very, very proud of. a vital interest to every person in the 10th district is our transportation system. in this congress we passed a two-year transportation bill, one which i can say is good and fair for our district. i fought hard and, yes, even broke with the party when i felt that the legislation was drafted would jeopardize our priorities and the people in the district. fortunately these concerns were remedied in the final legislation. i'm proud that we were able to come together in a bipartisan fashion to pass a transportation bill. i also want to highlight the stock act, which included some legislation that i have fought for. my no pensions for felons language. this provision strengthened existing federal law to ensure that taxpayers are not funding congressional pensions for lawmakers convicted of public corruption charges. as residents of illinois are all too familiar with our recent governor, rob

blagojevich, this has special meaning unfortunately to the constituents of illinois. but in the interest of the 10th district also carry beyond our own borders. i was proud to lead an effort early in showing a commitment of the house freshmen to make sure that foreign aid in this early budgetary crisis would not be jeopardized for our one true ally in the middle east, the state of israel. this included showing some support for what is become widely dome of the iron rocket defense system. but our focus in the middle east has certainly not stopped there. we've gone to great lengths in this congress to zero in on what i believe is the greatest threat we have to our own national security, and that is a nuclear armed iran. i've been pleased to team with representative ted deutch and senator kirk on a number of bills to stem this -- and confront this threat. our actions have ranged from strengthening sanctions on

iran's energy sector to promoting human rights and democracy inside iran and much more. in fact, one of our most important accomplishments in this congress will have been a strong sanctions package which passed both houses this summer and which included these provisions that we authored. finally, i'd like to highlight the ongoing work to pass a bipartisan budget agreement. this is an initiative that i have been proud to advance, starting with the bipartisan letter urging the supercommittee to go big, to put everything on the table with a debt reduction agreement that puts literally everything that people don't want to talk about out into the open and on the table to try to structure a deal that will in essence put our economy on a course to fiscal solvency. i certainly look forward to continuing these bipartisan efforts and yet again we find ourselves today at the fiscal cliff. just today i had an opportunity to sit down with erskine bowles

and alan simpson, other members of the brave 38 who voted for the only bipartisan budget to come to the floor in i guess a generation. i certainly hope that we can come together and talk about something bigger, bigger solutions, not deals. we want solutions to the problems we face because that's what the american public, i believe, need. governing a democracy is not easy. it requires compromise. it requires working together, but as i've often said, putting people before politics and progress before partisanship is the only way that we can truly move this country forward and to have a better future. i thank the gentleman and i yield back. mr. calvert: i thank the gentleman. thank you for your service. next, i'd like to recognize our dean, the dean of the california republican delegation, congressman jerry lewis. mr. lewis: thank you very much, my colleague, ken calvert, for

holding this hour for members of the california delegation and friends beyond that. your kind remarks earlier about my work here is much more than i would like to take the time to talk about, but i do very much appreciate your mentioning my bride, arlene, in all of this. as you know, she's my partner in all of my work. thinking about the remarks that might have been made regarding my years of service here, one of the first things that comes to mind was early on in my career, i experienced a major flood in california. the 1938 flood. i'll never forget dropping the ping-pong ball out my back window. it fell a couple of feet and hit the water and floated out through the back fence.

during the years we had a chance to service the questions addressed. the seven observation dam, a -- seven oaks dam, sponsored by the corps of engineers, made it possible to ensure that such a flood will never occur again in the region known as the empire. it has been a great privilege of mine, most of all, to recall the fact that the vast percentage of issues that we deal with here in the house have almost nothing to do with partisan politics. it's very, very important that we are willing to recognize that working together we can make a difference on behalf of the american people. at home, issues like the proton therapy center, which provides for a noninvasive cancer treatment that has dramatic impact upon issues like tumors,

small tumors in the human brain, prostrate cancer, even breast cancer, noninvasive treatment as a result of nonpartisan bipartisan support for the kind of medical research that's part of the national institutes of health. over the years, probably the greatest privilege i had was to serve for a short time as the chairman of the full appropriations committee, the committee where i've spent my life, and during that time issues like the unmanned aerial vehicle, which has been part of our work, have indeed made a difference for those of us who care about making certain that in the future america continues to be the force for peace in the world. most importantly, congressman calvert, i wanted you to know as the new chairman of the california republican delegation, i am proud of the fact that you are my colleague and friend and in the years ahead we will continue to work

together on behalf of the people of our region. so with that, mr. chairman, i yield back the balance of my time. mr. calvert: i thank the gentleman, not only has he been a great colleague of all of us in california but a great friend to every one of us and i'd say we miss you but i know we're going to be seing you around both in california and here in washington, d.c. next i'd like to introduce the new dean of the california delegation, incoming dean next year, dana rohrabacher from orange county, california. mr. rohrabacher: i'd say i have big shoes to fill but i don't think i'll be able to ever fill congressman lewis' shoes. he has a list of accomplish. s that i don't know anyone else in this body has more to be proud of and more over the years meant as much to me as jerry lewis and he, when he talked about the dam, i happened to represent an area in california, orange county,

california new york which that man, because of what he did and with mr. calvert at his side, has built the santa ana river project that protects tens of thousands of homes from flood damage and it was due to the hard work, of course i was trying to support them but they were providing the leadership that got that through the congress. and so today we're saluting jerry lewis but also saluting the other members who are not going to be with us next year, wally herger was here earlier a man who fought so long and hard for the timber industry and the economic well being of northern california, dan lungren who is a highly principled person who we all look to in terms of a man who has such strong real swrouse and principled positions, you can't -- strong religious and principled position you can't help but admire him a man who was attorney general of california and running for congress twice.

i might add i took dan lungren's seat when he decided not to run for congress and run for higher office in orange county, excuse me, in the state of california. dave dreier who is one of the best liked people here in the united states congress. besides jerry lewis. i have to say that dave dreier is one of the nicest guys that -- and he had authority in his hands and it's very hard to be as nice as dave dreier is and to hold the authority he has as chairman of the rules committee. and brian bilbray, who i had really, he's leaving us as well, brian from san diego, i've had a lot of problems with brian because before he was elected i was the best surfer in the united states congress. of course there were no other purr of -- surfers at the time.

then brian comes along and that ended that. but i've worked closely with him on small modular reactors and on water quality for our coastline. mary bono mac, perhaps one they have -- mary bono mac, perhaps one of the most -- mary bono mack, perhaps one of the loveliest members. she took her husband's seat and has done a terrific job ever since she took office in this tragic way. she's not only made the most of it but done wonderful thicks for inland -- inland empire in california. finally, elton gallegly, who represents the area of sorne california up in the area -- of southern california where you have the reagan library in his district. elton gallegly was a mayor

before he came to the house of representatives he represents more than just about anybody else here of that promotion that natural evolution of someone who has been active in their community, is elected to local office, and then came to serve his time in washington to put those skills to use for his country. so all of these people have made huge contributions. it's been my honor, before i came to work here, i was -- seven years i worked in the reagan white house. i worked for president ronald reagan. i thought that would be the greatest honor of my life and it was. but i can tell you right up there alongside that, it's been an honor dealing with and working with these people that i just described and mr. calvert as well but my colleagues like wally herger, brian bilbray, mary bono mack and elton gallegly. it's been my honor and the joy of my life to have worked alongside wonderful people like

this, trying to make our clint and world a bert place. with that, i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: i thank you, mr. rohrabacher. i look forward to serving with you for a long time in the future. -- mr. calvert: i thank you, mr. rohrabacher. i look forward to serving with you for a long time in the future. elton gallegly was brought up. we spent a lot of time together going back and forth to the airport. i don't know what i'm going to do now that he's retiring. elton is admired for his fighting spirit, tenacity. he is someone that will fight to the end for the things that he believes in. i've had the honor of working with congressman gallegly on a number of issues including e-verify, invasive species issues, congressman gallegly holds the distinction of the only member of congress, by the way, this is an important thing, who can get from the capitol to dulles airport in 30 minutes or less. i think he holds the record.

from the start, congressman gallegly has been a leader on immigration issues, most recently as chairman of the judiciary committee subcommittee on immigration policy and enforcement. he understands the nuances of our legal immigration system and the vital importance of secure borders, especially as it relates to his role as vice chairman of the foreign awares -- affairs committee he brought a unique perspective to the foreign affairs committee, having served eight years on the permanent select committee on intelligence, and counterintelligence subcommittee. in the aftermath of september 11, congressman fwalingly tchared subcommittee on internal -- international, excuse me, terrorism nonproliferation and human rights and held one of the first hearings on the 9/11 commission's recommendations, a hearing that led to more than 10 provisions that were included in the final bill. congressman gallegly's long,

distinguished career has been supported by the love and support of his wife janis and their four children and 10 grarne. congressman gallegly's dedication to our national security, strong borders, legal immigration, has contribute immensely to the betterment of our nation and we certainly thank him for all the years of his service. next, i want to talk about my friend brian bilbray. you know, working alongside congressman gallegly on immigration issues is congressman bilbray, chairman of the house immigration reform caucus. anyone who knows congressman bilbray thoughs his commitment and dedication to his constituents. he's always on the go, never misses an opportunity to meet and discuss issues important to those he represents. congressman bilbray is a member of the house energy and commerce committee with subcommittee appointments to the oversight and

investigations communication and technology energy and power. he is chairman of the house immigration reform caucus where he works with members of both sides of the aisle to enact meaningful immigration reform. in this congress, congressman bilbray was a leader on policy initiatives that would incentivize companies to return their businesses to the united states, as well as encourage the private sector to hire veterans. i personally worked with him on a number of issues including making e-verify mandatory. throughout his career, congressman bilbray has been supported by his wonderful wife karen, their five children, and seven grandchildren. it's been an honor to serve with congressman bilbray and i'd like to extend my gratitude for his many years of dedicated service. we're great friends and will continue to be so. next up is someone i have known very closely and consider a very close personal friend,

whose leadership will be sorely missed and that's congresswoman mary bono mac. -- mac. -- mack. california's only woman in the united states house of representatives. she was the first republican woman to hold the gavel on the energy and commerce committee, one of the oldest standing committees in the house of representatives. as chairman she's become a national leader on privacy issues, an expert on technology matters and global champion of internet freedom. in addition to her impressive chairmanship, congresswoman bono mack passed laws requiring country of origin labeling for

fruits and vegetables and rewarding companies that utilize clean burning fuel technologies and increasing the fuel efficiency of federal buildings. the house of representatives also overwhelmingly passed mary bono mack's spy act which help prospect personal information on the internet. she's married to fellow congressman connie mac, they have two children, three stepchildren is now a new grandmother. all of us will miss mary bono mack's humor and i know we'll see her in town. on a personal note, i remember after -- shortly after sonny was killed a number of years ago, visiting her and me and jerry lewis and it was a very difficult time but she stood the breach and came in as dana mentioned under very tragic circumstances, but represented he her beloved district in a

wonderful way and has been a fantastic member of the california delegation. we will misher service. with that, mr. speaker, in closing i'd like to mention that between -- unless there are other speakers? i don't think there are. between seven departing member the house is losing 163 years of experience. the careers of my colleagues have had a certain positive impact on hundreds of thousands of constituents, californians and americans. with that, mr. speaker, i'm prepared to yield to my colleagues who would make it -- who would make it to the special order today. they couldn't be here because of schedules. i'm sure they'll find a way to add their thoughts. i yield back my time. the speaker pro tempore: under

the speaker's announced spoil of january 5, 2011, the chairman recognizes the jovepl from the district of columbia ms. norton for 30 minutes. ms. norton: thank you, mr. speaker. i come to the floor with other delegates to make a plea for respect that will please -- that we're pleased to say that the house has already honored. mr. speaker, this house has seen many disagreements on many issues and that's what the american people expect. we believe and the house has shown that it believes that some members -- some matters, however, are beyond dispute. there are some matters where unity is to be expected. these matters go to basic respect for our members of the armed services.

the house to its great credit has already demonstrated that respect and i want to first thank the delegate whose provision, whose amendment was chiefly responsible, delegate is a -- is a plan, from -- delegate sablan from the mariana islands, whose amendment has, i believe, twice been put in the house defense authorization bill that requires that when the flags of the 50 states are raised or honored by the armed forces that the flags of the territories and of the district of columbia also be honored. i want to also thank house armed services committee

chairman buck mckeon and ranking member adam smith for putting this provision in the defense authorization bill that is now pending. this bill will be considered, i suppose new york conference by the house and the senate. it is in the house bill. we regret it is not in the senate bill and so the delegates and i have come to the floor to ask that the senate follow the lead of the house. -- of the house on this matter of common courtesy and respect. delegate sablan's provision in the house-passed bill simply requires that the flags of the territories and of the district of colombia be respected when

the armed services chooses to honor the flags of the states. i have in addition written a letter to the president asking for a presidential memorandum can directing all federal agencies to do the same. i regret to report that the army alone recognizes the d.c. flag and the flags of the territory as a matter of policy and i want to give one example that i think will make the house understand why this is so important to us. a mother wrote me of having attended the graduation of her son from the naval station great lakes. she had wanted this boy to go to college. he had gotten admitted to college, he wanted to go to the navy and so they said to the navy, you will go, and as graduation day came from naval

station great lakes and they called the names of the graduates one by one and they got to his name, jonathan rucker, and they called his name. the flag of every other graduate was raised when the name of the graduate was called. but this young man graduating essentially from boot camp induction into the navy had his name called but his flag not raised. the flag is the district of columbia. his parents were heartbroken. as you might imagine. and the mother wrote me. it was from that example that i understood how very important this was and understood how important my fellow delegate's bill, now adopted by the house, was. it was personal disrespect for the young man, now becoming a

part of the united states navy. it was driss respect for the district of -- disrespect for the district of columbia flag, it was disrespect for the residents of this city who have served and died in every war that our country has ever fought in, including the war that created the united states of america. and to let you know how much this means to those of us who have no vote but pay taxes, same as the rest, who are members of this house, and go to war, you now see the huge disproportion, at least in my own district, you will find it in the districts of the delegates as well, world war i, 635 casualties, more than three states. world war ii, 3,-- 375,000 casualties, more than four states. korea, 547 casualties, more than eight states.

these are all district of columbia residents. and the vietnam war, 243 d.c. carkts, more than 10 states -- carkts, more than 10 states. we are calling on -- carkts. we are calling on the senate to include the language requiring the armed forces to fly the d.c. flag and the flag of the territories whenever the flags of the 50 states are raised. mr. speaker, we think that is far from too much to ask in light of the young men and women we represent, who are in the armed forces today and those who have given their lives for the united states of america. it is my privilege to ask the sponsor of the successful amendment, delegate sablan from the northern mariana islands, if he would speak at this time.

mr. sablan: thank you very much. and thank you very much, congresswoman norton. the distinguished representative of the district of columbia, she represents me whenever i am not at home. and has done an exceptional job and i thank you for sponsoring today's short order. mr. speaker, just imagine returning home to the united states after many months of life-threatening combat. imagine the relief you feel to be safe and the joyfulness of the welcome you expect to receive. then imagine as you enter that welcoming ceremony you see displayed the flags of every state but the flag of your own home is missing. this is a sad experience for some 36,000 service men and women, men and women whose home is the district of columbia or one of the united states territories, of american samoa, guam, puerto rico, the united states virgin islands, and my own district, the northern

mariana islands. the flags of our home jurisdictions are often missing from the flag displays at military installations during welcomeback ceremonies, deployment ceremonies and graduations. a constituent alert med to this problem about two years ago. this individual had noticed the absence of the northern marianas flag from a display of u.s. state and territorial flags in new york. she reported how troubling it was to her as a member of our armed services, from the northern mariana islands, returning to combat duty, looking up to see her own flag missing from the ranks of flags there. let me read what she said. it's been nine months, still no seeing my flag displayed. no plague display with a deployment ceremony being held and no flag displayed at a welcoming ceremony being held, welcoming back soldiers from

deployment. i wonder what's going on to our elected leaders. there are -- very sad. i remember coming back from the first gulf war, i've seen the rest of my unit being greeted by family and friends. as a single soldier back then, i did not have family waiting for my return. however, the family that i frequented while there greeted me with hugs. one made them stand out and is forever etched in my mind is our flag being wielded by these friends much mine. the pride of seeing our flag waving was overwhelming and gave me a sense of belonging to the united states. as a veteran and more so as a proud person, i hope the lack of representation in fort drum is corrected.

this was not an isolated incident. last year i visited a soldier who was receiving treatment at walter reed national military medical center in bethesda. a grand display of the 50 states , the flags of the 50 states lined the lobby of the main facility. unfortunately the flag of that young soldier was lying upstairs in a bed. painfully recovering from his wounds, was missing from the grand display downstairs. none of the territory flags, nor the flag of the district of columbia were presented at walter reed. i also received a report of the same situation at fort jackson in south carolina. a family there to see their nephew graduate from basic training saw the flags of all 50 states and every territory on display, all except the flag of the northern marianas. let me read what they said in that email. congressman, my nephew graduated

from basic training in fort jackson, south carolina, yesterday. my niece and my daughter-in-law were looking for the flag to take a picture with the graduate since they couldn't find the flag, so they had to settle with the guam flag. to have their picture taken. please look into this, why the flag was not displayed during basic training graduation. on another occasion, several of my constituents attended a basic combat training graduation at fort jackson, south carolina. the venue where the ceremony took place had flags from all 50 states and every territory except the northern mariana islands. these soldiers -- those soldiers shared their deep disappointment with me. disappointment with me. they felt their command and their country did not recognize their contributions or their home. another constituent informed me that the northern ar mariana island flags were not being flown in san diego where her husband worked.

sheers what she wrote. good morning, sir. i happen to stumble upon an article regarding our flag being raised in all u.s. army installations during ceremonies. well, my husband works on the marine corps recruit depot -- depot in san diego and i am tired of him complaining about not seeing our flag during graduations here. could you please extends this to other armed forces as well? thank you. over 20,000 marine recruits pass through there every year. so not only are our own soldiers feeling forgotten, but recruits from other areas are being sent a message that the district of columbia and the five u.s. territories are not really a part of the nation those marines will be defending. of course i brought all these cases to the attention of the pentagon. the secretary of the army responded with an assurance that our flag would be flown at army installations whenever the flags of the states are on display. and many of the individual

installations i mentioned took corrective action when i contacted them. but despite this response, i continue to receive reports of situations where territorial flags are forgotten. see, the problem is there is no uniform regulation governing the inclusion of the flags of the district of columbia and the territories, though the secretary -- army secretary said it is the policy of the air force, the coast guards, the marines and the navy to let local commanders have the discretion to display state flags. with or without the flags of the territories on their installations. i have requested that the service modify their regulations to include our flags but no action has been taken. and i believe it should not be at the discretion of individual base commanders to decide to exclude any part of the united states. or the fighting men and women from any part of the united states from recognition. it is a point of pride for members of our armed services,

from the district of columbia, or the northern mariana islands, or any of the u.s. territories to see their home flag on display. these flags demonstrate that their territory is a part of this great nation of ours. that's why i included a provision in this year's national defense authorization act requiring the flag of all the states of all u.s. territories and the district of columbia, whenever and wherever the official flags of all 50 states are flown on u.s. military installations. that's why we're here this afternoon. speaking on behalf of those 36,000 service men members from our districts who are asking the other body, senate, to include the same provision in their bill. this provision ensures recognition for all our country service members, no matter what part of the united states they go home -- they call home. i just celebrated veterans day

in the northern mariana islands at the american memorial park. there is a code of honor for those soldiers who died there during world war ii. and guess what, mr. speaker? all the flags, the territories and the 50 states, were displayed there in recognition of our great nation, the united states of america. not one state was left out. not one territory was left out. all displayed there. so let us all spare our soldiers, marines, sailors, air men, coast guardsmen and veterans the disappointment of not seeing their flags together with the flags of the u.s. states whenever they fly and i thank you for sharing your time with me. congresswoman norton, thank you for your leadership and for taking a leading position on this issue. thank you very much, mr. speaker. ms. norton: thank you, delegate sablan, you're the leader on this issue with your provision that you succeeded in getting

included in the house, the defense authorization bill. may i inquire of the chair how much time we have? the last remaining? the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady has 14 minutes remaining. ms. norton: i thank you very much. i did want to mention that the delegate sablan indicated he had received these complaints from his constituents. that's how we know this. these veterans, these members of the armed forces bring it to our attention. and he also mentioned that some commanders had the discretion as to whether or not to fly our flags. i noted that -- i note that the secretary of defense has indeed issued a memorandum to all parts of the armed services and his word was that he encouraged, that left to the discretion, encouraged are his words,

discretion, are his words, of commanders whether to display the flags of the territories and the district of columbia when the flags of the 50 states are displayed. now, i would ask the undersecretary of defense, i would ask the president of the united states, i would ask the secretary of defense whether or not there will ever be discretion in a commander whether to fly the flags of virginia or utah or north carolina or florida, that would be considered an insult to those states, we consider it no less. i'm pleased to yield time as well to the delegate from the u.s. virgin islands, congresswoman christensen. mrs. christensen: thank you, congresswoman, and thank you congressman sablan for your

steadfast leadership on this issue of importance to our constituents, particularly to the military men and women and their families if the district of columbia and the u.s. territories. last year, congressman sablan successfully worked to include a provision in the house national defense authorization act and it was opposed by the senate due to costs. how much could six extra flags cost? it could not even be a fraction of a blip in the defense and military budget. but i'm proud to stand here with my colleagues in support of our military, national guard and reservists to call for respect for our flags. we're calling on our colleagues to follow the exarm of the house and include language requiring all branches of the armed services to fly the flags of the territories and the

district of columbia when flying all flags of the states. it is important that when the fleefs 50 states are flown we see also the flags of washington, d.c., american so moe what, guam, northern mariana islands, puerto rico and the virgin ilends. flying the flags of each -- if this were legislative -- legislatively mandated they would have to tap into their budgets to buy the flags, it is but a min us kuhl part of the debt we owe to those men and women if the territories who serve as a higher per capita

rate than other states. part of the process of rebuilding the military is respecting all who served and are serving for the recognition they deserve. the u.s. territories and the district of columbia have long and distinguished military histories. in our days the virgin islanders have fought in every war and conflict including the american revolution. not only did we serve but the west indies played a role in keeping the revolutionary soldiers supplied with gun poud udder and our rum helped keep the soldiers warm. alexander hamilton grew up in the virgin islands. he later became the seen yore aide-de-camp to general

washington. it's reported that we were the first to salute the stars and stripes in one of our beautiful harbors. as of last year, u.s. -- the u.s. virgin islands had a total of 1,807 men and women armed services personnel serving in the army, air force, coast guard and navy. we have 108 officers proudly serving in our national guard and air guard and sadly, we too lost soldier well, lost eight in the afghan and iraq wars. presently, the decision on which flags fly and are laons rests with the individual base commander. the display of flags in the territories and u.s. military installations at home and abroad varies. the department of the army is the only branch of the military that has taken steps to ensure a service-wide policy requiring display of all 56 flags.

i stand today with my five delegate colleagues to again call on the senate to adopt the house bill that includes language requiring all branches of the armed fores to fly the flags of the district of columbia, american samoa, the commonwealth of the northern marianas, quam, puerto rico and the u.s. virgin islands when the flags of the 50 states are displayed. we're tired of being overlooked in programs and initiatives and today we draw the line as disrespecting our soldiers and by extension my constituents and those of my fellow delegates. we are part of the united states and flying our flag with all the others is the least that our military men, women, and their families deserve. i yield back my time. ms. norton: i thank my colleague for those remarks and we have another delegate who has come to the floor, i'm pleased to invite congressman faleomavaega from american

samoa to step forward at this time. mr. faleomavaega: i ask unanimous consent to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. faleomavaega: and that the full text of my statement be made part of the record. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. faleomavaega: i thank the gentlelady from the district of columbia for giving me the opportunity to speak today. i rise today with my fellow delegates to urge the senate to adopt the house provision in f.y. 240613 national defense authorization act this provision would require in statute the integration and display of flags of each of the u.s. territories at u.s. military installations when and where the flags of the 50 states are flown or displayed. mr. speaker, the lack of a unified armed forces policy requiring the display of the flags of our u.s. territories is indeed a serious oversight. it is an oversight of the

district of columbia and u.s. territories who are part of the american family and who have unique histories with our nation. mr. speaker, in our nation's history, soldiers have fought valiantly in battle but at times with little recognition. from the hundreds of thousands of african-americans who fought for our nation since the time of the revolutionary war, to some 200,000-plus soldiers who made up 10% of the entire union army in the civil war and the tens of thousands of japanese american soldiers who fought alongside their fellow americans in europe during world war ii, service members and veterans from the district of columbia and u.s. territories are marginalized by this oversight despite our significant contributions to our nation. as a matter of fact, the u.s. territories were in large part reacquired for the very purpose of our national defense, an important strategic -- and important and stra -- strategic and military interests.

alfred mahan was one of those who advocated the theory in the late 19th century that a nation that controls the oceans would rule the world. at a time when we heard worlds like colonialism and imperialism and manifest destiny and they were accepted, they were proved correct as the united kingdom or great britain established one of the most powerful nations ever and it's mostly due to the fact that they had the most powerful navy in the world. it was a stabling location for 30,000 marines and soldiers before they were transfered to gaud canal and other -- gaudal canal and other destinations. for years, u.s. naval officials pleaded for the united states to show presence in the south

pacific. and the suggestion was that abisland would be the ideal place to build a station to allow u.s. naval ships to utilize especially in hurricane season. in 1899, in washington, d.c., the united states, great britain and germany held a conference whereby a tripart treaty was agreed upon so that germany and great britain would continue the colonial policy of fighting and the u.s. was free to deal with the traditional leaders and chiefs of other islands and by consent of these chiefs, there were treaties that were never approved until 1929.

some may ask, is a territory like american samoa relevant to our nation? and to that i would argue, absolutely. especially given the u.s. focus on asia-pacific region from our continuous involvement for 10 years now in iraq and afghanistan. mr. speaker, i would ask the question, what would happen if the leaders of samoa or fiji or the solomon islands or other areas would agree to have let's say china, perhaps, to build a sun marine base in the islands. i would i would be curious if the department of defense or the pentagon or the congress may indicate some concern in this region of the world. mr. speaker, as a vietnam veteran and as a representative of a district with high rates of military enlistment, i respectfully urge the senate to adopt the house provision that would give the honor to all of our service members from the district of columbia, puerto

rico, guam, the virgin islands, american so moea and the northern mariana islands. i thank my colleagues and with one voice say do the right thing. honor the ultimate sacrifice of the tens and thousands of our men and women who proudly served the armed services of our nation and who are from the u.s. territories and district of columbia. i want to note for the record that i know our colleague, the gentlelady from guam, a senior move the house armed services committee, would have been here but because of other commitments she was unable to join us in this special order. and mr. speaker, in closing, i'm reminded again of a statement made by a retired u.s. marine brigadier general and a dear republican friend of mine a son of guam, graduated from notre dame and a very dear republican friend, as i said, said a colleague of ours in

congress, former member of the house, he sobed in our relationship between our nation and her territories and said, we were equal in war but not in peace. with that, mr. speaker, i sincerely hope our colleagues in the senate, senator -- chairman levin and ranking member, distinguished republican senator, a dear friend as well, john mccain, and all the noves senate armed services committee make this a positive aspect and to the gentlelady from the district of columbia, i cannot help but say more. 6 humbings,000 u.s. citizens live in her district, they pay federal income taxes and yet she's denied the right to vote on the floor. it's unbecoming to democracy. mr. speaker, i thank you for your patience and yield back. ms. norton: mr. speaker, how much time remains? the speaker pro tempore: 30 seconds remain.

ms. norton: we have heard movingly from my three colleagues, i hope the senate has been as moved as i was by hearing from them. i want only to say, mr. speaker, you've heard from all of us who are american citizens who represent american citizens and american sints who fight and have fought for their country, who were pleased and continue to volunteer in disproportionate numbers into the armed forces, who are among the less than 1% who carry all of us, who carry all of us on their shoulders. that's what the volunteer army is all about today. we ask the senate to do what we congratulate and commend and thank the house for having already done. thank you, house of representatives, for respecting our flags and for respecting us as representatives of the american people and of american veterans and i yield back.

the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back. under the speaker's announced spoifl january 5, 2011, the chair recognizes the gentleman from california, mr. lungren, for 30 minutes. mr. lungren: i thank the speaker. mr. speaker, on 9/11, i was in this city and therefore was an eyewitness to the impact of the attack on the united states in the capital city. i had a friend who was on the airplane that was crashed into the pentagon. there was a gentleman who was a partner in the law firm that i had just joined who was on that airplane. a young man who had -- attended

school with my children and whose family had worshiped at the same catholic church was on the level hit by the first airplane in the twin towers. and understanding the nature of the attack against the united states at that time, i felt a strong urging to once again be involved in public service. and that was the genesis of my decision when the opportunity presented it self several years later to return to this body. that was the compelling reason. i was privileged to be appointed to the homeland security committee, the permanent

homeland security committee. and i was privileged to serve as chairman of one of the subcommittees. and since that time i have been privileged to continue to serve on that committee as well as serve on the house judiciary committee where we had responsibility for, among other things, the patriot act and fisa, the foreign intelligence surveillance act. both of which were, in my judgment, and are in my judgment essential to our response to the threat that existed at the time of their cession and the -- creation and the threat that remains. one of the ironies of my service is that i am elected from a district in sacramento county, california, nearly 3,000 miles from the site of the attack in new york and the attack here in washington, d.c.

and while we have had a plot to blow up l.a. airport that was thwarted by tremendous work, by a federal employee on our northwestern border, it has been somewhat difficult to articulate in sufficient terms the threat that remains to us as a nation to my constituency. but those in california are not alone in their failure to understand the urgency of the moment. i think we as a nation have as a result of the successes that we have achieved in our defense of this nation allowed ourselves some level of complacency and a

misapprehension of the danger that remains. when i served in the congress in my first tour of service, in the 1980's, actually from 1979 to 1989, january of 1979 to january of 1989, i for several years was a member of the house intelligence committee. at that time the phrase homeland security or the word homeland was never uttered. if you had uttered it then it would be -- have a foreign sense to it. protect the homeland, wasn't that what hitler was talking about? there was a strange knows to -- notion to that term. it of course began to be used in normal parlance after 9/11 and now it regularly trips off our tongue, homeland security. the committee on homeland security. the defense of the homeland.

because we understand that the nation of the -- nature of the war in which we are presently engaged is very different than the wars that we have engaged in in the past. those were wars of territorial conquest. those were wars where you could gauge success or failure by the amount of territory that you had ache tan -- that you had taken. by the number of people who had died. by the men and armaments that were preceding to battle. and in some ways you could anticipate the success or failure by the location of the troops. by the array of weapons. today we're facing a very different threat. in addition to the fighting war that has gone on in the middle east, with men and women in uniform performing bravely and as well as any that we have ever had, we're now dealing with an

enemy that is not defined as a nation state. solely. is not defined as a physical army moving to our shores, but is in many ways engaged in the essence of asymmetric warfare. that is not pitting one military force against a military force, one grouping of military equipment versus another, but rather the essence of asemitic warfare in attempting to create -- asymmetric warfare in attempting to create psychological more than physical damage, but physical damage if they may do so. on 9/11 we suffered tremendous physical damage. we lost over 3,000 people. we saw destroyed one of the symbols of american capitalism,

one of the symbols of american free enterprise, one of the symbols of one of america's greatest cities. we also saw an attack on the pentagon. it didn't destroy the pentagon. it didn't cause the number of casualties would you see in a major battle, although every life lost was a tragedy. but it was a psychological blow to the united states. it was in some ways the foundational principle of terrorism. how do you exact the greatest amount of terror, a lack of confidence, a fear in a people, particularly in the civilian population, while doing what would be relatively speaking a small amount of damage? and i don't want to diminish the amount of physical damage that was done. but relative to the scenes that

we have seen from world war ii, for destruction of entire cities, for destruction of buildings and infrastructure that existed not for years, not for decades, but for centuries, and yet the threat is as great as the threats we have faced before. and within the context of this war of terror, as opposed to the war on terror, because the war is really against those who would destroy us, utilizing terror, i don't think you should define a war as against the tactics used by the enemy, you have to define the enemy and we've had some difficulty in doing that in part because of political correctness. but an essential part of this

war on terror is found in the area of cyber. the world of cyber. and that's what i would like to address this evening for a few momentless. cybersecurity. -- moments. cybersecurity. because i think one of the great failings of this congress and one of the things that i regret having not accomplished before i leave this house in several weeks is our successful addressing of the threat we find in the world of cyber. cyber-- the cyber world is difficult to grasp because you can't smell it, you can't feel it, you can't touch it. i can't hear it. but yet it is imbedded in virtually everything we do. if you would look at the world of computers, the world of technology, the world of connectivity of those things,

and the wireless world, and that is a term that needs to be defined and we don't have the full time to talk about that, because wireless means partly wireless instruments and partly wired instruments and partly cables which are utilized to spread what started wireless communications to distant lands. nonetheless, because you can't physically see it in most instances it is not readily apparent that it is there and while the essence of this new computerized and technology -connected world allows us to do things we never dreamed of doing before. and while that enhances our standard of living and permits us to be able to receive goods

and services and specific essential communications from far away places, it also creates tremendous vulnerabilities. to the extent that you are connected, you are also vulnerable. to the extent that you rely on that connectivity to be able to send control decisions to distant places, you also create a vulnerability along that pathway. you create a vulnerability for someone who might be able to capture that control. and as you understand the place that the cyberworld plays in our critical infrastructure, that which gives us the guts of the

underpinnings of our standard of living, power, electricity, water, just to name a few, you understand if someone controls those or interferes with those or sets off false messages on those, the world as we know it changes and if those who control in that way by hacking, by intervention, by malwear, if they are successful, they change our standard of living tremendously and not for the better. so, what do we have to do? in the first instance we have to recognize the problem. in this body we've not recognized that problem. in the senate they haven't recognized that problem. with all due respect, even think to he -- though i work very

closely with the administration, it hasn't been a priority enough . the public doesn't understand it or appreciate it in part because it is not a politically sexy thing to talk about. i grew up in southern california where a news director many years ago coined the phrase, if it bleeds, it leads. meaning we'll put it on tv if you can find a car crash. if you find somebody bleeding somewhere we'll put it on tv, long before we'll put some good that someone has done on tv. cybersecurity doesn't bleed. until someone invades it. one of the things that happened over the last couple of years is stuxnet. it is an example of malwear or virus.

it was an intrusion into an already existing i.t. system. the iranian government's system that they utilized for purposes of developing their nuclear weapon system, at least that is what is suggested in the public press, and according to the public press, whatever this was that was interjected there led government for a period of time, gave off false signals that everything was ok to those who were operating the system, and then at some period of time carried out commands that were contrary to the integrity of the system, causing, as reported in public articles, the centrifuges in the nuclear system to basically destroy themselves. why is that important? the first example we've seen publicly of a physical destruction of a system, i would call that in the nature of crit krall infrastructure -- critical infrastructure, as a result of a cyberattack. we've seen suggestions of other

such things. whoever did that, thank god they seemed to be on our side. but now the gene j is out of the bot -- genie is out of the bottle. if it was done by those who are friends of ours, what would happen if people captured it who were not friends of others? and now that it has been done successful, evidently, they know it can be done. so you can have people who try and reverse engineer it or you can have people who just start from ground zero saying, look, it's been done, let us now theoretically determine how it was done and how we can do it. my point is, once it has happened, we should understand that there are those who want to destroy us, that we use it against us. let me ask a question and that would be, what would happen if someone introduced a malwear or viruses into several of the major medical or health systems in this nation